


Change: Part 1

by smitethedead



Series: Burdens [1]
Category: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Power Rangers
Genre: Alien Invasion, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comfort, Coming Out, Gay, M/M, Mind Games, News Media, Prophetic Dreams, Psychic Abilities
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-28
Updated: 2017-11-03
Packaged: 2018-09-20 08:54:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 51,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9483743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smitethedead/pseuds/smitethedead
Summary: A Might Morphin' Power Ranger AU where events from the show cause actual impact to the world around it. This is set in the same universe, picking up a few months after the devastation caused from the Green Ranger's service to Rita. Adam and Rocky are juniors in high school living in Stone Canyon. They are pulled into a conflict of good vs evil, all the while adapting to the rapid changes bestowed upon their lives. As they face these challenges, the bonds that they forge will give them the strength to persevere and may even lead to romance.





	1. Adam; Rocky

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfiction ever written. This is Part 1 of 3 in a series of 4 fics. As the title infers, the theme is change with the first fic focusing on a more coming of age superhero story. Aside from wanting to contribute to the small existence of Rocky/Adam fic, I wanted to write a realistic version of the Power Rangers. Teenagers already deal with social pressures and finding their individuality. Even as an adult it's hard to deal with what life gives you, let alone being a superhero and fighting villains that don't seem to destroy anything nor affect the human populace at large. With the overall story arc I have in mind to tell, I want to address balancing these issues and dealing with the strain. I definitely appreciate any positive or constructive feedback as I develop my writing style. I intend to try and update either weekly or bi-weekly since I juggle work and school full-time. Enough with the rambles and on with the story! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> PS - My fic will take elements from the show, movie, comics, as well as my own ideas.

"No, not again..."

Adam felt himself trapped in that familiar yet unwelcome room. There was an unnatural darkness surrounding him which dimmed his vision, unable to see anything two feet away from his eyes. He had the inclination that even if the darkness was gone, his visibility would barely improve. However, this shadow was distinct: wrong, evil. He was disoriented with no way to discern where an exit was.

"Why do I always end up here?"  
  
Within the past week, regardless what type of dream Adam was having, it always warped to the realm he was stranded in now. This darkness felt alive as if there was a consciousness behind it. He could not shake the image from his mind. Adam had no control, no ability to will himself awake. His mind allowed him to wake only when _it_ finished showing him an additional aspect to the dream. Was it a premonition? A warning? What was the meaning behind it? Some part of his instincts told him he was lost. He felt the need to scream, calling out names in the hope that someone would answer.

"Aisha! Mom! Dad. Rocky..." As soon as Rocky's name slipped from his tongue and escaped his lips, the shadow would clear, lighting up a path. A fog seemed to be lifted. It was at that moment he could manage to perceive some image standing toward the end.

On the first night after the image appeared, he awoke. The following evening Adam saw the silhouette motion to him, encouraging him to follow. The next night he began to tread down the makeshift hallway accompanied by a sensation of bare feet gracing cold stone. A foul odor then filled the space and invaded his lungs, a smell reminiscent of burning wood, metal, and rot. By the fourth night, Adam made his way to the end of hall where a door stood, but the figure remained still as if guarding it. On the fifth evening, the entity asked him if he was ready for what laid beyond the door. The voice was familiar. Someone he knew intimately, but his mind became clouded so he could not remember.

This was night six. Adam originated in the same spot each night. As he stood in the familiar, dark space he merely recited the names he would speak. "Aisha. Mom. Dad." He paused to give Rocky’s name special attention. His heart always begged him to be wary. An unknown voice in his head would say, _Do not handle names so freely._

"Rocky."

The shadow revealed the familiar path directed toward the door. However, this time the figure was no longer clad in shadow. Adam slowly stepped forward, inching toward... _Him_. Rocky waited in front of the door.

He offered his hand to Adam, "I was wondering how long you would keep me waiting. It's time.” When Adam did not immediately take his hand, Rocky asked, “You trust me right?"

Adam felt uncertain but this was the first familiar vision his dream had offered. He reached out to grab Rocky’s hand, noticing there was no warmth in the touch. _This Rocky is only a conjuration in my head_ , Adam thought to himself. He decided to participate in the conversation, "I’ve called out to you each night. Why haven’t you responded until now?” Adam wanted to see how this dream would unfold. The only visible reaction that came from Rocky was his usual goofy smile. That smile he had come to trust and admire, warmth pooling in his stomach. Adam paused to collect his thoughts, then affirmed to himself, _I’ll take that as a good sign, Rocky or not_.

Rocky appeared to notice the hesitation and spoke, "I've been waiting for you to be able to see me, Adam. That is all I can say. Are you ready?" Rocky grabbed the handle on the door behind him, waiting for an answer.

Adam took the plunge, “Yes.” With that, Rocky nodded and opened the door. As soon as they stepped through, Adam felt a strong grip on his shoulder as he jerked around to see his reflection staring at himself dead in the eyes. "Don't lose yourself. Don't let him go." His double meant Rocky. Adam felt a strong weight tug at his arm. As he turned, panic set in when he saw Rocky hanging over the edge of a cliff and Adam being his only support.

"Adam! Help me! Don't let go! Don’t leave me behind!"

That same grip dug into his shoulder, yet this time accompanied by a sharp pain. He glanced over his shoulder. The image haunted him. He saw a wicked grin worn by a woman clad in green, eyes dark, evil. A shrill voice resounded from the woman: "Don’t let go," she imitated mockingly. She leaned in and whispered, “Give in to me.” Shrugging out of her grasped, he turned to run but instead of Rocky and the cliff, he saw himself pushed to the edge by a new entity. The silhouette of a man, adorned in black, shined bright. Before Adam could analyze it further, the image was surrounded instantly in a swirling green light. The cloud rushed at Adam, thrusting him off the precipice of the cliff. Adam was falling. He could hear Rocky screaming beneath him as the darkness consumed them in the free fall. Shadows wrapped around him, traveling up his arm until a bright blue light pierced the darkness above him and latched onto his forearm.

Rocky appeared, stating, "time to go."  
  
KNOCK. KNOCK.

Adam was startled awake by a pounding on the door. "Adam, Rocky is here! You better be ready for school! No son of mine will be late or I’ll drag you to school myself!" His mother’s footsteps drifted away.

“Shit!" Adam fell back onto the bed blowing out a sigh of relief as his heart continued to beat fiercely in his chest.  


\--------  


Rocky drove down the highway with Adam accompanying him on the passenger side of his truck. He kept glancing at his best friend noticing Adam was unusually quiet. Adam’s arm was propped up on the windowsill as he gazed at the scenery. He fidgeted nervously with his backpack. Rocky thought, s _omething is clearly bothering him_. The only comment Adam stated since he hopped in the truck was a ‘hello.’ The problem was this is not the first time Rocky had noticed this behavior. All week something kept Adam distracted and the mannerisms appeared to be getting worse as the week progressed. Rocky tried not to push Adam to talk since he tended to do so anyway at his own pace. Even Aisha was concerned and confided in Rocky during the middle of the week. Since it was only Adam in the truck with him, he felt Adam may be more receptive to speaking when there were not two people confronting his best friend, "hey, Adam, you alright? You've been acting weird all week. What's going on?"  
  
Adam shook his head and looked at rocky, "huh? Oh sorry. Just haven’t been sleeping well."  
  
Rocky frowned. That was worst attempt at trying to avoid the topic. "Are you sure, buddy? I mean I’m not the only one that has noticed it. Aisha is close to pinning you in a corner and forcing it out from you. You know you can talk to us."  
  
"I know," that was Adam’s only response.  
  
Rocky figured he would have better luck trying again later after Adam was not as groggy seeing how Adam had apparently just woken up when he arrived at the Park’s house. He knew Adam was slow to rise, but he impressed Rocky by rushing out in a mere fifteen to twenty minutes. Rocky chuckled to himself, _damn, that has to be a record. It’d be nice if he could do that on a regular basis so we weren’t late all the time._ "You know, if your mom found out we were late all the time…”

Adam interrupted, “yeah, I don’t need the Asian mom treatment. Why? Are you gonna tell?” He looked over at Rocky giving a faint smile.

 _There he is,_ Rocky thought and then returned the smile, “My lips are sealed.”

They drove on in silence for a few minutes, “the winter break will be here in another week.” Rocky paused. “Do you have any plans? I was thinking maybe you'd wanna get out of town for a bit? Could be us and Aisha... or maybe just you and me, you know if you wanted." Rocky tried hard not to look at Adam, fighting to keep himself from blushing. He had been building up the courage to ask him on a date; however, he was unsure how Adam would respond, so he decided to ask subtly.  
  
Rocky knew for a while now that his feelings for Adam ran deeper than friendship. Lately, every time Rocky was around Adam, his heart started beating at a slightly faster tempo. His stomach became lighter, ‘filled with butterflies’ as the common expression went. Anytime he looked into those beautiful brown, almond-shaped eyes, he would catch himself staring too long and that was followed by a clumsy attempt to cover his actions. However, Adam never knew the difference since that was just Rocky being goofy as usual. Adam was not aware of his sexual orientation. Only Aisha knew, but that discovery was purely accidental.

Rocky has always cared for Adam. Their friendship started in the second grade when Rocky stood up to the class bullies picking on a boy his age with short black hair and brown, almond-shaped eyes. He saved him that day and from then on they were nearly inseparable. They hung out whenever they had a chance, enjoying each other’s company and sharing their interests with one another. They joined a martial arts dojo together and continued to develop their love for the art. They had the other boy’s back and confided in one another. However, it was only recently that he discovered his affections ran deeper.

Over the summer leading into their junior year of high school, Rocky and Adam participated in a local martial arts competition. They trained for the event for months. Adam always pushed himself. He studied form and application until he felt it met his own high expectations. The arts seemed to come to Rocky more naturally, but he would practice with Adam to motivate his friend. It was Adam’s determination and focus that Rocky admired. During one of their training sessions about a week before the competition, Rocky was watching Adam rehearse his forms and techniques.  Aisha decided to accompany them; whenever Aisha and Rocky got together, their favorite pastime was teasing Adam. Adam never took it personally but one comment they made caused Adam to show his signature shy grin in their direction. It was then Rocky saw Adam with new eyes. That smile was beautiful and Rocky wanted to be the one to always spark such happiness in Adam. He wanted to taste those lips.

At that moment Aisha caught Rocky gazing intently at Adam, almost primal (and she told him as much), “hey, Rocky, you like him don’t you?”

“Uh, wha’? What do you mean? Of course I like him,” he scoffed slightly, “I mean, he is my best friend. Why would you ask something like that?” He scratched the back of his head and tried to hide his embarrassment. Internally, he was panicking, _Shit, well, I can’t hide it now, especially with her boring down on me with that stare._

“Uh huh,” she paused, Rocky able to read her thought of, _I clocked you,_ which was always accompanied by that shit-eating grin, “Well, that was the worst attempt at a lie I’ve heard from either of you, and I have known you boys long enough.” She dropped the attitude and became serious, “Look, I have seen the way you look at him recently. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Just because he is a guy doesn’t mean…”

Rocky sighed and thought, _No point in lying. Better to be straight up with her._ “I’ve never felt guilty about the way I feel toward him. I’m just afraid…”

“Afraid of what, Rocky?” Adam chimed in, “Is my form off? I swear I’ve gone over it a dozen times just this afternoon. It’s those landings after the kicks right? I can’t seem to...”

“No, Adam, you look great. I mean your form is pretty. Uh, you know what? It’s good. It all looks good.” Rocky felt like dying, looking away and hoping Adam cannot see how hot his face felt.

Adam gave an inquisitorial look then relaxed, “thanks, Rocky. I appreciate all the help. I think you will make an excellent instructor one day. I mean it. My performance has improved because of you.”

“No problem, man.” The tension left Rocky’s body and he smiled at Adam, proud of his friend.

They were silent for a moment. Then, Rocky exchanged smiles with Aisha and they busted out laughing.

“What?” Adam retorted, “Did I miss something guys?”

“Everything is just fine. Just proving a point to Rocky,” Aisha beamed too eagerly

 _Shit._ Rocky thought to himself. He got lost in those beautiful brown, almond-shaped eyes.

 _“Rocky?”_ He told himself.

“Rocky?” _Wait, that’s not me,_ he thought.

“Rocky?” he snapped back to the present when he realized Adam was the one calling his name, while waving his hand in front of Rocky’s face.

“Sorry,” Rocky apologized. He had not noticed he dozed off that long while driving. Rocky and Adam were quickly approaching the school. When they turned into the parking lot, Rocky spotted a space close to the entrance.  Most of the senior, and incidentally some of the junior classmen, skipped the first period of the day close to the winter break. The convenience was a rare sight and he took advantage of it. After parking, Rocky started zoning out again, thinking about his feelings toward Adam.

After a moment Adam prompted Rocky, “You, uh, gonna get out? We are already late enough to class as it is.”

“Yeah, cause of you, Adam.” sarcasm in his voice. “I mean it’s not like they expect us to show up on time anyway.”

“Says the guy wanting to give me a lecture about my mom catching ‘our’ bad habits,” the two of them laughed at the familiar banter. “Ok, well I’ll meet you up after school, Rocky. Don’t stay out here too long. Don’t need you sitting here through the winter break.” With that comment Adam stepped out of the pick-up and headed into the school building.

Rocky rested his head on his hands against the steering wheel. He had been building up the courage to ask Adam out. He was afraid Adam would reject him. _Or worse hate me. Think that I’m disgusting,_ those ideas Rocky did not want to admit aloud _._ When he realized his preferences for men, he did not think twice about it. There was definitely hesitation with his family because of his family’s religious beliefs, but what would be worse if the one person he always trusted and cared for could not even accept him. Thinking to himself again, _Not sure I could deal with it easily if he didn’t reciprocate my feelings. I can at least live in his shadow, just to make sure he stays safe, happy._

With an exhale of air he did not realize he was holding, Rocky opened the door and followed Adam.


	2. Rocky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am really excited in writing this story! This chapter started off as a different idea. However, after thinking and expanding upon ideas, this chapter decided to exist. It is really cool how a story naturally evolves during the writing process. Hope you enjoy!

Rocky saw no point in why all of the teachers had to give detailed lectures before the winter break. It was a ridiculous system because they never had time to schedule the tests before the break. The school either held one too many pep rallies or allowed extra early dismissals. The students always forgot the material and the teachers would have to review anyway when they came back after the holidays. The school was oddly dysfunctional, but the students embraced it. School spirit was at least always strong.

Stone Canyon High School itself was a decent size, a little smaller than some of the other neighboring high schools and housing about 700 students. The school itself was founded about thirty years ago so the maintenance was not unbearable. All the halls were wide and adorned with trophy shelves, school banners and announcement boards. The campus invested a lot of its extra resources into improving all extracurricular activities and their departments. Rocky and Adam always thought they were trying to compete with Angel Grove High School since they were the only real competition when it came to sporting events. The gymnasium was highly admired by other school districts. They had a large pool and a grand field for track and popular sports. In conjunction with favoring extracurricular activities, the school prided itself on encouraging and improving social functions as well as providing community support. The curriculum was one of the better mandated ones based on Adam and Aisha’s Intel. Overall, it was his school in the town he loved and lived in his whole life.

This brought Rocky to the beginning of his school day in home room in which he shared with Adam. He could never pay much attention at this time of year. However, it didn’t help that he continued to be preoccupied with Adam’s behavior. When their teacher allowed them time to complete an assignment or stepped out of class, Rocky attempted simple banter with Adam in which he did participate. Although, Adam was still quieter than normal and did not help to keep conversations flowing.

Once the bell rang to signal the end of class, Adam appeared to vanish almost instantly. It was strange because Rocky always waited patiently for his friend as Adam tended to move at the pace of on old man in the early hours of school. It was not until second or third period when Adam would actually wake up. He could excuse Adam’s absence since he knew Adam’s next class was on the other side of campus. _But that’s not the reason is it, Adam?_ Rocky had questioned to himself. As Rocky made his way past Adam’s locker, in which the latter was not there, he bumped into Aisha.

“Hey, Rocky!” Aisha beamed and gave Rocky a hug.

“Hey, you,” Rocky replied as he returned the sign of affection.

Out of the three of them, Aisha was the one to keep everything in perspective. Adam was analytical and had the brains of the operation. It was Rocky that usually kept everyone uplifted. Aisha joined Rocky and Adam’s camaraderie in about fourth grade. She had just moved to Stone Canyon then and was incredibly shy, which was amazing for people to imagine when they spent merely five minutes with her. Adam and himself saw a lonely girl sitting by herself at a table consistently during several lunch periods. One day, they decided to introduce themselves in the hopes of giving her new friends and easing her transition. Rocky would never forget the bright smile that Aisha grew that day and would continue to wear. He also never imagined that the three of them would bond so strongly. It was a decision Rocky would never regret.

Aisha had a variety of interests different from the boys; however, their support for one another transcended that fact. They always took the time to appreciate each other. The one hobby Aisha actually held interest in and even joined was martial arts. She was not as passionate as Adam or himself, but she enjoyed the ability to ground herself and release any stresses she may have had. She had talent and would even join them in a tournament when she did not have previous engagements.

Coming back to the present, Rocky decided to take advantage of the situation to debrief Aisha on what Adam had confided in him in the truck earlier that morning. Rocky and Aisha had second period together whereas Adam was in an AP class. Between the walk and actual class time, there was plenty of opportunity to fill Aisha in before the two of them had third period with Adam: chemistry. After their second class ended, Rocky and Aisha made a quick pit stop by their lockers to exchange books and strolled down the hall to the chemistry lab. Rocky entered the classroom first and saw Adam already seated with his nose in his book.

The chemistry room contained eight tables with two to three students assigned to each row. Chemistry sets and safety equipment were sprawled on the counter tops along with the students’ backpacks. Mrs. Langsley, their science professor, sat at her desk in front of the room with dates written on the blackboard behind her for their assignments during the break and their tests at the beginning of the New Year.

The three of them sat at the two farthest desks in the back of the room. Aisha sat at the table in front of Adam and Rocky while it was typically just the boys by themselves at their desk. Aisha was paired up with a transfer student named Kat, supposedly from Australia. None of them liked her much. She was a sweet girl but had a boring personality. Luckily, she was absent today so it would make goading Adam into a serious conversation much easier when the opportunity arrived.

Taking his seat next to Adam, Rocky nudged Adam’s side startling him. The quick moment of panic was adorable as realization relaxed into Adam’s features. Rocky grinned. “Didn’t mean to spook ya’ buddy. You kinda just left me alone in home room. Isn’t it my job to be the active one early in the morning?” He could not help to poke fun, hoping to elevate Adam’s spirit.

It appeared to have worked for a second time this morning as Adam perked up, “Well maybe I decided to change my ways.”

“The day Adam decides to be awake before third period is the day Rocky will be the one to actually get A’s on his Chemistry homework,” Aisha chimed in leaning backwards to face them.

“Hey! I do alright for myself in here,” Rocky retorted.

Mrs. Langsley walked up to the boys’ table, “Here you go, Adam,” a genuine smile that turned sour as she then looked at Rocky, “and Rocky.” There was that disapproving glare a teacher gave you when they expected more from you because they knew their student could do better, yet you continued to disappoint them.

Adam leaned over to glance at the test paper Mrs. Langsley provided, commenting, “Oh, a C+. Do you actually listen during any of my tutoring sessions with you?” Rocky grumbled as Aisha and Adam laughed at Rocky’s expense.

Fortune favored Rocky. Mrs. Langsley had decided to allow a free class period due to an every growing stack of tests and lab assignments to grade that were left until the last minute. Even the professors acted like high school students and never pushed themselves to keep up with their responsibilities. However, it allowed Rocky and Aisha to try and get into Adam’s head more. They had about forty-five minutes to attempt to snap Adam out of his spell.

Turning on her barstool, Aisha leaned onto their table to get as private of a conversation as would be allowed, “Spill the beans, Adam. What about a dream has you so strung up?”

The glare Adam gave Rocky could kill him cold; however, the gesture amused him more than anything. Rocky shrugged and mouthed ‘sorry,’ and then proceeded to pout his lip and form a heart with his hands. The eye roll that followed was even better. Regardless, Aisha had her ways of making either boy talk. She tended to fight dirty.

Adam responded to Rocky, “How am I not surprised that Rocky told you?” Adam genuinely seemed annoyed and his body language was rigid, his voice steady. Suddenly, there was a warm current that shot through Rocky accompanied by a small vibration when he leaned closer toward Adam and patted his back. The sensation made him shiver from the contact and he jumped back thinking, _That was weird. I could swear though that Adam is happy, really laughing to himself, despite what he is showing us now._ Something intuitive spoke to Rocky and he tended to go with his gut reaction.

“Are you ok?” Adam had noticed Rocky’s reaction.

“Sorry, just cold,” _smooth Rocky,_ he thought to himself.

“Hey, let’s get to the topic at hand guys,” She expressed to both of them. Then, she directed her attention toward Adam, “Besides, don’t think I wouldn’t be able to make you talk anyway, Adam,” Aisha winked at Adam as a smile played on her face.

“Touché,” Adam couldn’t suppress the chuckle that managed to escape. “Ok. But this is going to sound weird.”

“Try me,” Aisha sat up and crossed her arms across her chest.

Rocky leaned in again toward Adam, refraining from touching him this time, “there is no need to be afraid. We tell each other all of our weird shit.”

Adam gave a curt smile and let out a sigh. Rocky’s best friend inched closer toward Aisha and himself and whispered, “It’s not the dream itself. I have weird dreams all the time.” He paused, furrowing his eyebrows, “the problem is that it felt real, almost like there was this presence inside the dream trying to tell me something. Like the images in my head alluded to some sort of truth. Also, it’s the only dream that I have had all week. It repeats every night, only each night there is a new addition to the dream.”

“What? Like some sort of vision of the future?” Rocky asked sincerely.

“Yeah. Rationally, it does not make any sense. It’s a gut feeling I have. I feel something bad is going to happen.” Adam stopped abruptly, then, he said with conviction, “No. I know something is going to happen.” Rocky could tell he felt more comfortable as his body relaxed from the tension even with the gravity of the conversation weighing down on the three of them.

Aisha tried to sympathize by placing a hand on Adams’. As soon as she did, Rocky noticed something unusual as Aisha yelped out a gasp and jumped off of the stool. She touched her forehead and shook it. Then, she proceeded to say, “Sorry, guys. I, uh, need to go to the ladies’ room.” Aisha promptly excused herself to Mrs. Langsley and left the room.

Rocky looked at Adam, concern on both of their faces. “What was that?” Rocky asked.

“I don’t know,” Adam responded. “Are either of you ok? You look pale, Rocks.” Adam rubbed his hand against Rocky’s arm, the contact unknowingly very welcome to Rocky.

Rocky shrugged attempting to be optimistic, “I’m fine. I’m sure Aisha is too.” Rocky withheld his actual feelings from Adam. When Aisha reacted so strangely to Adam, Rocky felt a wave of vertigo hit him so strongly. His skin crawled, feeling sharp pricks as the sensation traveled up his arms and back that made the hairs on his neck stand up. Rocky recognized the familiar sensation. It was fear or panic. Which one, he could not distinguish. What bothered him was the fact the sensation was not his. It was Aisha’s, but he could not explain how.

Aisha did not return during the remainder of the class period.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PS - I definitely enjoy writing from Rocky's perspective. I will write from Adam's point of view within the next couple of chapters.


	3. Rocky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to go ahead and churn this out. I am having to do some story revisions that will make the story better so additional chapters may take slightly longer to be published. I'm kinda just thinking instead of having due dates, I will just add a chapter when I finish with one, with the goal in mind to at least submit something weekly like I mentioned in previous notes. Enjoy!

Rocky finished placing his school books in his locker, wrapping up the school day. After chemistry class, the remainder of the day was rather uneventful. Aisha appeared in the afternoon classes that they took together; however, she kept to herself. Rocky and Adam attempted to ask her if everything was all right but she would merely inform them that she either was not feeling well, or that they were worrying too much. The boys mutually agreed to let her have some space. Aisha was stubborn and unlike them she would only confess to anything when she felt like it. Adam could be talked to. Rocky wore his emotions on his sleeve and tended to vent willingly. Regardless, it still bothered Rocky that neither Aisha nor Adam really talked to him today. He appreciated Adam opened up some, but he did not really deliver any details other than weird foreboding feelings that was unlike Adam.

As the locker door shut, Rocky felt a tap on his shoulder, turning around to see Aisha standing behind him. “Hey, Aisha. Are you feeling any better?”

Aisha kept her arms wrapped around her chest, comforting herself. She nodded and gave a thin smile, then spoke, “yeah I’m good, Rocky. Thanks for asking. Sorry about today. Just have a lot going on in my mind.” Aisha went quiet with that last comment.

“Hey look,” Rocky placed a hand on Aisha’s shoulder while gripping his backpack with the other, “why don’t the three of us go out for some drinks or something at the café. Maybe grab a movie? Seems like we could all do something mindless for a little while.” He chuckled hoping it would ease Aisha.

She did not perk up like Adam did. Whatever was going on really was getting to her, but she appeared to appreciate the invite, stating, “yeah, Rocky, I agree.” Then, she smirked, “I’m surprised you had a good idea in there,” tapping the side of his head affectionately.

Rocky laughed, “you know me. Mr. Einstein, over here.”

Aisha joined his laughter and wrapped an arm around Rocky’s waist as they walked down the hallway. “Whatever, goober. Just don’t try to come up with any inventions. I don’t need you giving yourself an aneurism by using too much brain power.”

They walked outside to the front of the school stopping at the steps. Aisha had let go of Rocky and looked around for a few seconds. With furrowed brows, she covered her face to shade herself from the sunlight and asked, “Do you by chance know where Adam went?”

Shaking his head, Rocky replied, “No, not since last period. He said he would meet me at my truck.” He glanced over to his red pick-up, but there was no sign of Adam. “I can go look for him and then meet up with you at the café?”

“Sure, sounds good,” Aisha reached out and squeezed Rocky’s arm before walking toward the parking lot. As she got to the bottom of the steps she craned her head and waved, “don’t leave a girl waiting too long.” Then, she continued to her vehicle.

Rocky waved back at his friend. He closed his eyes, dropping his head and sighing to himself. He thought of where Adam might be, _He usually likes to sit by the lake when he wants to clear his head. As good a place to start as any, Rocky._ Walking down the steps, he veered onto the sidewalk that wrapped around the school and led to the track field. The sports fields were located behind the school, adjacent to the gymnasium and indoor swimming pool. When looking at the building from the front, there was the main parking lot and student pick up lane. To the left of the building was the remainder of the student and faculty parking where a pathway covered by a steel awning led to the center structure and hooked around the building to other parts of the campus. The right side led beside the library and cafeteria with outside seating, tables, and even a gazebo for students to recline or study. Once Rocky walked past the cafeteria and onto the track field, he could see the football stadium and baseball fields as well. Beyond that was the lake.

The city of Stone Canyon wrapped around a giant lake with the school residing toward the southern outskirts of the town. The business district was on the northern stretch of the city where stone canyons, hence the name, appeared not too far in the distance. It was a good tourist attraction for people interested in hiking or driving around the landscape. A few caverns and natural cites laid just beyond the city limits. Citizens of the town tended to enjoy recreational activities at the lake. There was a beach toward the center of the town that people swam or jet skied. A restaurant, a couple of bars, and a shopping center resided on a pier on the business district side. The lake was popular with tourists as well due to it being the only large body of water within a couple hundred miles. Stone Canyon was more inland, closer to Nevada, with the only other large city being Angel Grove. Any real beaches required a lengthy drive to the coast. It was convenient Stone Canyon was large enough that it had everything one needed without traveling outside.

Students were not permitted to visit the lake during school hours. The administration actually had a fence built around the perimeter since there were numerous reports of students hiding away at the lake to escape detention or run away from gym class. However, a few students, including Rocky, Adam and Aisha, found a spot in the fence that was ‘modified’ to allow students to squeeze through it. The site was hidden by tall enough shrubs and trees that the spot had not been discovered yet. Once Rocky had made his way across the field, he scanned the area and tucked himself through the weak point and winded down the slope to the lake.

The water’s edge tended to calm Adam. He would claim that the sounds of the water and the reflection of the light were a pleasant sensation to him. Usually, it was only Adam and Rocky that visited a particular spot tucked past a couple of trees. There was a brief overhang to allow one to dip their feet into the water. Rocky’s hunch was correct; there was Adam, staring off into the water with his pants hiked up and his feet submerged. The afternoon light appeared to shine specifically on Adam, lighting his features. _Damn he is beautiful,_ Rocky thought in admiration. Rocky sat down beside his oldest friend not really saying anything as he mirrored Adam by placing his own feet into the water. At times when things were really stressful, they would just sit together in silence. Nothing had to be said. It was an understanding silence, a companionship that spoke volumes in which words could not.

Adam was the first to speak, “Rocky, I have a question for you.”

“What’s that?” Rocky said, raising his eyebrows curiously.

“I never actually told you it was a dream that was bothering me.” Adam stated plainly.

Rocky paused. The truth was Adam never did. He turned and informed Adam, “You didn’t. All I told Aisha is what you told me. You had trouble sleeping and that you were quiet and acting weird still.”

Adam pondered that thought for a moment, “Did you get a chance to speak with Aisha?”

“Yeah I did. We agreed to meet at the Canyon Café. Maybe get a movie? I don’t know just to do something mindless for awhile. I wanted you two to have a distraction, make you guys happy.” Rocky shrugged to himself.

“Did she say anything else?” Adam inquired. His eyes focused on the lake.

“I didn’t push it.” Rocky replied.

“What was that reaction? That was, odd.” Adam held his breath for a moment, “Everything feels wrong.”

Rocky was silent, clasping his hands together in his lap and circling his feet in the water. He peeked up at Adam for a second then grinned as an idea formed in his head. Adam would kill him for it. Suddenly, Rocky feigned surprise while pointing animatedly out at the water and exclaimed, “Whoa, Adam, did you see that!?”

Adam jerked up in surprise, “No, what is it!?” He had Adam’s attention now as he continued to point toward the opposite side of the lake. Adam stated, “I don’t know what you are talking about, Rah—Whoa!!”

Rocky busted out laughing dodging the splashes of water coming in his direction as Adam fell into the pool from Rocky’s shove. Adam resurfaced gasping for air and swimming afloat. He turned to face Rocky giving him a menacing stare. That made Rocky clutch his stomach, laughing even harder, “Ahahaha. Sorry, buddy.” He choked in between laughs, “you were so broody, I –heh- ha, ahaha.”

The next moment Rocky felt a tug on the front of his shirt as he was yanked down into the water with Adam. Cold shot through his body as water flooded his ears. His clothes were heavy since they became damp and he had to push himself above the water’s surface to catch a lungful of air. He arose to the sounds of Adam’s laughter. Rocky felt an expression of shock on his face then grinned as he splashed water into Adam’s face. There was a brief pause before both of them filled the air around them with sounds of joy, acting like little kids as they battled in the water. After a few minutes they stopped and climbed out of the water.

“I can’t believe you pulled me in there,” Rocky jabbed mockingly.

Adam shook his head, “you fucking deserved it.” However, there was no malice in his voice, only humor. “Thankfully, it doesn’t get that cold this side of California.”

“Yeah, not that I would have thought that out anyway,” Rocky chuckled again as he took off his shirt to ring out the water. He paused seeing Adam following suit with his shirt halfway up his back and covering his head. In the quick few seconds he had, Rocky examined Adam’s body. Adam was lean with toned muscles due to the martial arts training. His pale skin glistened as droplets of water fell down his torso. His nipples perked as the contrast from the cold air hit his body. Traveling down, he saw a tuft of hair circle his bellybutton and trail down into his pants. He felt his face get hot and desire clouded his mind. His cock responded as images of fantasies he had for Adam popped into his head.

“Rocky?” Rocky looked up at the sound of his name, luckily Adam was not looking directly at him or Adam would have seen his Latin friend the shade of a lobster. Rocky frantically turned away, gulping down his thoughts. He felt his cock throb in his pants and quickly threw his shirt onto his crotch to prevent any risk of exposing his secret to Adam.

“What’s up, Adam?” Rocky chanced a look at Adam and saw his friend gazing at his hands.

“I just can’t shake the feeling my dream gave me. It’s so stupid. Why do I feel like this?” Adam verbalized. It was so weird to see Adam unnerved when he was usually grounded and calm.

As if by instinct, Rocky placed his hand on Adam’s back and rubbed it slightly, still aware of his ‘member’ and trying to push out the fact that he was touching Adam’s bare torso from his mind. Rocky briefly saw a flash of dark light around Adam associated with a feeling of heaviness and restricted breathing. There was a wave of emotion that filled his heart and mind. Rocky felt anxious and worried. The rush was so strong and sudden that he became disoriented briefly. Underneath the thought, he envisioned a green light. He had an inclination that touching Adam would help dissipate the feeling. It seemed to work since Adam’s muscles relaxed which he was not aware of noticing until now. Adam felt warmer somehow, but it was not physical warmth. It became easier to breath.

“Hey, I mean it was just a dream right? Not saying it isn’t something to be bothered by but it isn’t like it will happen.” Rocky scratched his head. He was trying to figure out how to best support Adam without making him blow off the conversation. Rocky did not want to risk Adam shutting him out again. He wanted to make these feelings go away. “What I mean to say is you shouldn’t let it get to you. You aren’t alone in this. I’m here.” He whispered the last statement. “Tell me what happened in the dream?” Rocky pleaded.

Adam nodded, “I was stuck in this room, but there was this heavy shadow that made it impossible to see anything. I shouted out different names looking for anyone I knew. Then, a door appeared and some entity called me over to it. Only last night I finally saw who it was.”

“And?” Rocky questioned. “Don’t leave me hanging here.”

Adam chuckled. Rocky leaned into Adam and wrapped his arm around his best friend. Adam spoke again, “Well, when I arrive at the door, you are standing there. You guide me through it and then I turn to see myself. Only, I’m surrounded in shadow and the other me starts talking. I can’t remember what he says but then you start falling off this cliff and some woman has this shrill laugh aimed at me. I can’t get that laugh out of my head. It felt so real, so familiar.” Adam shook his head.

Another wave of anxiety hit Rocky again. “Is that the end of the dream?”

“No. we both start falling then,” Adam paused for a second. “Suddenly, a blue light shines and pulls me out. You save me. Then, I wake up.”

Rocky saw Adam look away _. Is he embarrassed?_ Rocky thought. Removing that thought, Rocky became serious and said, “hey, if you ever need me to be your knight in shining armor, I’m here for ya’, buddy,” he removed his grip and patted Adam’s back, “Always. I mean it wouldn’t be the first time I had to save you from some _pendejos_.”

“I’ll keep that in mind next time I need help, but I’m not some damsel in distress.” Adam stood up after that comment and grinned proudly, mouth stretched ear to ear.

 _It seems I did help. All that tension is almost gone._ Rocky told himself _._

Adam placed his hand out in front of him, “come on. I’m sure Aisha’s getting impatient. She’s probably sitting at the café waiting for us.”

Rocky matched Adam’s smile with his own. He grabbed Adam’s hand and accepted the help up. When he stood in front of Adam however, he stumbled. Adam bent his knees and caught Rocky, balancing him. Rocky looked up into those rich brown, almond-shaped eyes. Adam was staring back at him, his hot breath brushing Rocky’s face. Adam’s torso was still bare and Rocky wanted to be able to taste that skin.

Adam began to chuckle, “who is the damsel in distress now?”

Rocky blushed and pushed himself off of Adam. His mouth went dry and his heart was racing furiously. Trying to keep composure he stated, “yeah, yeah, laugh it up. C’mon let’s go.”

“Yeah,” Adam put his shirt back on and began walking past Rocky. Then, a hand appeared on Rocky’s shoulder, “oh, I would definitely like to get out of Stone Canyon during the winter break. Just with you. It’s been a while since it’s been just the two of us like this. I love Aisha don’t get me wrong, but I miss, us.” With that comment, Adam slung his backpack over his should and walked up the slope toward the school.

Rocky felt his heart skip a beat and the butterflies were back, _Mierta,_ he cussed mentally.

As he continued to watch Adam walk away, he saw that dark light around Adam again. Only it turned a shade of green before dispersing. The heaviness, the anxiety, all but vanished immediately. Those feelings were foreign. Rocky knew then that he believed what Adam was telling him. He also believed that somehow, those feelings were completely Adam’s and experienced them as Adam had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise the story will pick up in the next few chapters! Adam will get writing time as well. =)


	4. Adam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rewrote chunks of this chapter trying to get the wording to my liking. Adam definitely feels different when writing him compared to Rocky. That was the biggest challenge with this chapter in making sure I wrote Adam well.

Adam saw the way Rocky kept looking at him the past few days. Was Rocky really that worried about him? The way Rocky carried himself and always prioritized the well-being of his friends impressed Adam. It was an admirable trait and Adam found it made Rocky magnetic, aside from his handsome features. Not that he held any deeper feeling or thought of him in a romantic sense. He could say the same about his physical attraction to Aisha as well. They were his best friends and did not view them romantically, regardless of his bisexuality. He never had a problem recognizing his preferences for both sexes and never made notions to hide it. Adam was not looking for a date but the students that walked down the halls by him would catch his eye. A fit jock with brunette hair would walk by and Adam remained looking at his pecks just a little longer than appropriate. There was a girl with fine black hair and glasses in his AP classes that had a beautiful frame and her voice was sweet to his ears. Adam was inexperienced in the love and sex department, but he was comfortable with himself. However, he still had not opened up about his sexual orientation to either Aisha or Rocky, neither his family nor to any of his other classmates. He was not afraid of Aisha or Rocky judging him. His main worry was what his parents might think since they had more traditional views because of their cultural background. Thankfully, they were not religious, so that was one advantage. Still, it did not mean they would not cast him out if Adam did not line up with their moral implications. The brave few who did come out in town were usually teased or beaten when no one was around. At least he could defend himself. It was easier to hide behind the acceptable half of his identity than face those that supported intolerant views.

Looking at Rocky in the driver’s seat, Adam thought how he almost appeared to glow around him recently. When did it start? Was it during the summer? Had Rocky suddenly change overnight? He was not sure what the reason was. It was a mysterious inkling Adam had but nothing negative or worrisome. Adam noticed how when he was around his best friend, that Rocky tended to smile more frequently. He was always attentive and seemed to know the right combination of words to help alleviate any worries Adam had. Rocky waited tenaciously for Adam between classes and always offered to chauffeur him around town. Overall, he spent most of his time in Adam’s presence when he was not at home. Adam adored Rocky for the devotion he held. Adam felt he could usually communicate his emotions since Rocky tended to wear his on his sleeve, opening up and confiding everything in Adam. Their connection just felt different.

The dream did keep Rocky in Adam’s mind. First and foremost, he was sorting out its implications and meanings. Was Rocky meant to help him in some way?  Adam felt he over analyzed things sometimes. His analytical nature was beneficial in how he interpreted the world, such as his excellence in school or ability to strive in martial arts. Maybe he should take some lessons from Rocky and lighten up so Adam was not in his head so much.

He snapped himself from his thoughts to look around the cab of Rocky’s truck. They were headed to the Canyon Café in the Center Plaza of the business district. It was an easy trip down the highway, although it was a more scenic view when going through the neighborhoods alongside the lake. The truck was an older model. The red seats were faded with some rips in the seams. The dashboard had a radio that was barely functional, but it could at least play the occasional cassette tape. The AC blew cool air only on the lower settings. Rocky usually kept the windows rolled down anyway like he did now. Around the rear-view mirror, Rocky had a simple wooden rosary hung. He was not deeply religious compared to the rest of his household following the Catholic faith. However, Rocky had enough faith to believe in something outside the normal binds of reality. Adam respected Rocky’s conviction and beliefs. Rocky adorned the steering wheel with a grip because it was a strangely particular pet peeve if he gripped a worn out steering wheel while driving. In the end, it was Rocky’s truck, ol’ reliable. Adam contained almost as much love for the vehicle as Rocky since he rode in it as much as Rocky drove it. It had been that way ever since Rocky pulled up into the Park’s driveway and honked the horn, a beaming smile spread across his face.

He glanced over to Rocky. They managed to dry off slightly in between the time they left the campus and on the drive to Central Plaza. Rocky was wearing a red tank top with a dry red and white plaid button down over it, sleeves rolled up to his shoulders, and a pair of Khaki shorts. Rocky’s hair was growing out a lot, but he kept it well maintained with the assistance of hair gel, which kept it slicked back. Rocky glanced at Adam, though he realized he was staring as Rocky smiled at him. That smile was so genuine and pure, speaking volumes about his passion and joy for life. It always uplifted Adam. Rocky looked back at the road then at Adam again, “What are you thinking about, Adam?”

“Oh, nothing. Just nonsense,” Adam said turning and blushing. He did not mean to stare at Rocky so long and it made Adam embarrassed. He tried of thinking of a topic at random, “So what would be your weapon of choice if we were thrown into a zombie apocalypse?  I would have to go with an ax. Multi-functional and it doesn’t run out of ammo. Easy to chop off a zombie’s limbs.”

“Uh,” Rocky thought for a moment as he drove, “I would have to go with a bat or maybe a pole. Something blunt. I mean an ax would just get dull. You can at least bash a head in with a blunt object and an additional benefit to wielding a pole is the ability to keep your distance. At least we are both sensible enough not to carry a gun. Only as good as many bullets you are carrying. Never really liked guns any way. I prefer something more, physical…” Adam wandered if Rocky meant that to sound as sexual as it did. Rocky did not act like he was joking. Maybe Adam was the perverted one.

“Hey, Rocky, just wanted to say, thanks. You know, for earlier.” Adam remarked.

“Of course! Just what knights in shining armor do best,” the sour look Adam directed toward his friend’s direction made Rocky grin. Then, they both started to crack up. It was simple, stupid humor they shared that only came from years of companionship. Adam appreciated their ability to express so much with little action.

“Alright we’re here,” Rocky stated as he pulled into the parking lot of the Canyon Café. The business was adjacent to a strand of buildings circling a wide fountain set in the middle of the plaza, with roads circling it and branching off in different directions into the city. It was beautiful as the site was adorned with sculptures of various people and meticulously maintained hedges.  Each business: a bakery, bookstore, and a few apparel department stores to name a few, had a certain character that brought color to the strip. The citizens of Stone Canyon loved walking around this part of town as they resided at the fountain, dined outside of the restaurants, and strolled along the sidewalks. It was a relaxing scene that Adam loved to capture with his eyes.

With the truck now in park, Adam stepped onto the pavement and closed the door to head inside of the café. On the other side of the vehicle, Adam heard Rocky comment, “hey, do you wear anything but black and white these days, Adam?

“I’ve got some green in my wardrobe. Why?” Adam asked.

“No, I was just curious. You could use some color,” Rocky suggested, “I mean it’s not like you have a signature color you have to wear.”

Adam grinned as he pulled open the door and to let Rocky pass, retorting, “why do you always where red? You always secretly angry?” Rocky just scoffed and shook his head as he entered the restaurant, Adam following behind him.

The Canyon Café was one of the more popular places on the strip that people, mostly students, went to in order to relax and escape from the pressures of the world for a moment. There was a bar where they served up orders for drinks and baked goods for the clientele. The color scheme contained variations of warm earth tones with wood being the focus of the décor. The lights were dim, hidden behind wall sconces near the top trim of the space. The large windows facing the center of the plaza helped to bring in natural lighting to offset the electric lights in the building. In the corner was a fireplace that they had lit, just during the winter months, which consisted of January and parts of February. A small stage was off to the side for local musicians to play, usually on the evenings and weekends. The furniture consisted of round wooden tables with chairs and couches in the center with a table displaying current magazines. In their usual corner was where Aisha was sitting, reading a textbook with a drink in hand, and most likely coffee. Rocky led Adam over toward the table and pulled out a chair to sit down.

“About time you boys showed up,” she looked at both of them then raised her eyebrows and asked, “uh, guys? Why are your clothes wet?”

“Rocky decided it would be a good idea to take an impromptu swim,” Adam grinned at Rocky, noticing his friend shrugging and pretending to be innocent.

Aisha looked at Rocky questioningly. Then, Rocky stated airily, “you know, sounded like a good idea, help to ease some tension from the day. I don’t think Adam appreciated my thoughtfulness.”

“If by thoughtful you mean, shoving me in potentially freezing water and drowning me, then sure,” Adam shook his head and lazily smiled. That was typical Rocky, spontaneity at its finest.

Aisha just stared at both of them then started to laugh. After a few seconds Rocky started in with the laughter. Adam felt the stare of a few other patrons in the café but the ridiculousness of the situation caught up to him as he joined in with the laughter as well. Eventually, they all calmed down. Adam wiped tears from his eyes stifling his chuckles until he was able to begin breathing normally again.

“You guys are so dumb, I swear,” Aisha said between broken breaths, still calming down from the high.

 Adam replied. “I needed to laugh. I’ve been so wound up lately.”

“I’m starting to think that’s just you Adam. You have perfected broody over the years,” Aisha commented.

“Not that you always brood that is,” Rocky added.

Adam stared at both of them, “am I really broody?”

“Well…” Rocky and Aisha chimed together.

Adam responded with a laugh, “I know I get wrapped up with what’s in my head. Sorry to worry you guys for so long.”

“It’s not like it would be a problem if you just talked to us. You don’t have to let us know every little thing; just enough to be able to help relieve some of your burden is all.” Aisha simply put.

Rocky placed a hand on his shoulder. Warmth instantly pooled into his body and he relaxed even more. “Yeah buddy. What she said.” Rocky nodded to Aisha’s direction, “I mean it’s not like I haven’t been telling you the same thing all week.”

“Aw its ok, Einstein,” she rubbed Rocky’s arm. Rocky returned her comment with a glare. Adam did not think Rocky could ever really make a threatening look to save his life, snickering at the thought.

Rocky turned to him, “what’s so funny?”

“Nothing,” Adam mused.

Their waitress, Cindy, who regularly waited their table, brought over a tray of beverages, the typical order already prepared: Aisha, a refill of coffee; Adam, a cup of green tea with honey in it; Rocky, a banana and strawberry fruit smoothie. “Don’t y’all ever want to order something different? Ya’ know maybe spice it up?”

The three of them looked at each other and turned, but before they could reveal their unanimous answer, Cindy responded, “No we like this, we are okay with this, Cindy you know us better than that,” she winked at them. “Y’all let me know if you want anything to snack on y’all hear?” and with that she walked back to the bar.

Adam watched as she walked away, eyes lingering a little too long. Aisha coughed bringing Adam to attention. However, when he looked at Aisha, her eyes were glued to her textbook as she casually tapped her mug. She paused her reading for a second to take sip while looking up at Adam to say, “Choices.” Then, she looked back down at her textbook. Rocky chuckled.

Adam nudged Rocky’s shoulder asking, “What do you think, Rocky? I never really see you date anyone. No one your type?”

His response was unexpected as Rocky tittered and began to look a little uncomfortable, nervous really. Rocky scratched the back of his head; he glimpsed at his watch, biting his lip which he did anytime that he was hiding something. It was an endearing expression. “It’s not like you really date anyone either,” Rocky sounded defensive.

Through the corner of his eye, Adam noticed Aisha set her mug down, glancing toward their direction with worry in her eyes. It was as if she was preparing to jump in the conversation. “I didn’t mean anything negative by it.” Adam reached out a hand to comfort Rocky. As soon as Adam set his hand on his friend, Rocky jerked away quickly. “Uh, Rocky?”

Rocky lifted his eyes to meet Adam’s momentarily and then turned away muttering, “Sorry, it’s nothing. And no I’m not dating anyone to answer your question.” Rocky propped his forearms onto the table and leaned his head on them, letting out a sigh.

Aisha placed a hand on Rocky, only this time he did not shrug out of the contact. He looked up at her, but instead of concern from Aisha or resistance from Rocky, they seemed to have an understanding, as if they knew an important piece of the puzzle that he did not. “Ok,” was Adam’s only response.

The notion was small, but it grated on Adam. Just a few minutes ago they were lecturing him about opening up. Now, they were acting like they were keeping secrets. Adam was not going to allow his friends to shut him out if he was expected otherwise.  “Well both of you are acting like you know something I don’t, and it seems all of us are hiding something from each other this week,” Adam had more bite than intended but he willing overlooked that fact.

Rocky released a breath of air and sat up in his seat. He turned toward Adam, placing an arm on the back of the chair, “it’s not like that, Adam.”

“Then, what is it? You don’t seem to have a problem telling me I can’t keep secrets from you,” Adam was giving into his emotions more.

Aisha shifted in place starting to say, “Adam, it’s…”

“No,” Adam cut her off as he rose up a hand, aimed toward Aisha, “I want to hear it from Rocky.”

Rocky lowered his eyes and appeared ashamed but was it because of Adam’s reaction or whatever was hidden behind closed doors. Scrunching his features, he looked at Adam but still not able to make full eye contact, “I said it’s nothing and I answered your question. Why are you pushing this?”

“Because I know you better than that,” Adam retorted.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I’m comfortable telling you about it. You don’t have to be a dick,” Rocky shied away realizing what he blurted out; the words hurt Adam.

“Fine,” he rose angrily from his chair and turned away from the table.

“Where are you going?” Rocky said raising his voice.

With a small gesture to acknowledge his destination, he replied, “outside. I need some air.”

“Wait, Adam!” Rocky called out, but anything else he might have said was lost on Adam as he marched through the entrance.

Adam walked a few steps down the sidewalk away from the plaza and leaned his back against the wall. Pulling his hands up to his face, he tugged at his hair and grinded his palms into his eyes, easing some of the tension from his body. He kept his face covered for a moment going over the repeated dream, thinking of the assignments at school, feeling how fatigued his body was from the week. All Adam really needed was a solid night’s rest. He was not acting himself. Feeling guilty about how he reacted to Rocky, he felt the need to go apologize. Before he could act on it, the chime over the café door to his left rang and footsteps inched toward his location. A warm body stopped and mirrored the stance as he felt Rocky brush against Adam’s arm. Adam dropped his hands and bumped his against the brick building. He nudged his head against Rocky’s as his best friend was leaned in toward Adam.

“I’m sorry, Rocky. I’m just exhausted but that doesn’t excuse my behavior, especially toward you,” Adam shifted himself more upright. “Whatever it is, tell me when you are ready. I’ll be ready to listen.”

Rocky pushed himself off the building offering a strained sigh, “it’s ok, buddy. The thing is I’ll never actually be ready to say it. So, I should just come out with it already.” Rocky turned to face Adam with misty eyes, speaking with a shaky voice, “I’m just scared of how you will react. You’re my best friend and I don’t want you to hate me because of it.”

Adam’s heart sank at the sight. It was rare to see Rocky so upset he was on the verge of tears. Cautiously moving to Rocky, he gingerly grabbed Rocky’s biceps and whispered, “I could never judge you Rocky.” Adam scrunched his brows together, “you are really starting to worry me. What’s bothering you so bad?”

There was a slight tremble coming from Rocky’s body accompanied by an abrupt laugh, choking to get the words out. Adam did not expect to hear the following words leave Rocky’s lips, “I’m gay, Adam.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter gets livelier!


	5. Adam

Adam did not anticipate that would be Rocky’s confession, but his behavior made more sense as the pieces fell into place. He understood why Rocky did not confide in him sooner, but it hurt having the presumption that Aisha probably knew already. However, Adam could not fault his best friend because he recognized the same hesitation and fear inside himself, especially since any form of homosexuality was still not widely accepted; California was more liberal than other parts of the country to the best of his knowledge. If Rocky felt anything like Adam, then Rocky needed his friend’s support. Also, Adam believed since Rocky boldly shared this intimate secret, he should reveal his sexual orientation as well.

“Rocky,” Adam said softly. Rocky flinched but didn’t move, “Rocky look at me.” As Rocky looked up, Adam saw his best friend trying to fight back tears. Rocky was always an openly emotional person but this image was still jarring. Adam wrapped a hand around the back of Rocky’s head, pressing his forehead to against his. Speaking audibly enough just for Rocky to hear, words spilled from his mouth, “Rocky, I am so proud of you. In over the ten years that I have known you, I have learned of the beautiful person that you are, and I would want nothing less from you. I want the Rocky here in front of me. I don’t care who you prefer to love. You are my best friend and I want you to feel comfortable to be yourself around me. I have never judged you and I never will. I promise, Rocky.”

Squeezing his eyes shut, a faint sniffle escaped Rocky as a lone tear fell. Adam wiped it away and noticed Rocky open a pair of watery hazel eyes. Rocky reached for Adam’s forearms and grasped them tightly, a raspy voice echoing, “I was so scared you would hate me. I worry about my family’s and my friends’ reactions; but the truth is: the only person I actually give a fuck carrying about it, is you. You’ve been in my life too long to imagine you not being there for me anymore.” The level of vulnerability Rocky allowed himself to show touched him.

Adam pulled Rocky into a warm embrace, offering security, comfort, “You don’t have to be afraid or hide anymore. You hear me?” Rocky nodded against Adam’s shoulder. They stood in each other’s arms as time appeared to stand still. Rocky’s heart raced but was gradually slowing down and the trembling had stopped. Adam felt warm inside. Something about having Rocky in his arms felt right as he held his friend close. They never hugged each other this intimately before but the reassurance it seemed to provide Rocky was worth every moment. Adam wanted to always be there for Rocky for everything, just like this.

They were silent for a moment longer before Adam spoke up, “how long has Aisha known?” Rocky pulled himself away to face Adam, the distance becoming cold, and he feeling his right shoulder was a little damp.

With puffy eyes yet a calmer demeanor now, Rocky spoke, “sometime during the summer. I didn’t actually tell her though. She figured it out on her own and I didn’t really deny it.” Rocky formed a smile as the remaining tension continued to drift from Rocky, “I feel relieved.” He looked down, placing his hands in his pockets and kicking the ground. “Thank you, Adam. It means more than you know, what you said to me.”

Adam shifted in his place and folded his arms across his chest, expressing, “while we are on the subject, there is something I should go ahead and tell you too. Not that I was trying to hide it, but I never could make myself say it either.” Adam looked Rocky in the eyes as his friend’s eyes furrowed. “I know how difficult it was for you to keep that a secret because I’m bi.”

Rocky’s expression became confused for a second then he mouthed ‘oh’ as he processed the information. Almost instantly his body language changed and his face was enlightened. “That’s great, Adam! That’s wonderful! Good for you.” Rocky continued to trip over his own words.

That was the second response Adam did not expect from Rocky today. Adam wondered if he was supposed to feel as delighted as Rocky. It’s true he felt relief as well, but he did not feel the need to bounce off the walls as Rocky appeared to be ready to do now. He asked slightly at a loss for words, “Uh, Rocky?”

“Yeah, what’s up buddy?” His friend’s face was beaming.

Adam looked at Rocky incredulously, “Did you have any questions for me?” He was starting to wish that Rocky could share some of that energy with him.

“Oh yeah, I’m great. We’re great. It’s all great!” Rocky was practically bouncing. Hugging Adam tightly, Rocky lifted Adam off the ground and made Adam laugh.

“What’s gotten into you now? You did a complete one eighty,” Adam could not keep the seriousness in his tone seeing Rocky so delighted. He attributed it to the disappearance of the burden that Rocky was carrying.

A sudden cough disturbed their moment. They both turned to see Aisha looking at them with Adam still trapped in Rocky’s grip. Rocky quickly placed Adam back down, almost dropping him, and mimicking each other, they backed away from each other and pretended what Aisha just saw did not happen. Aisha raised her hands, “I give up trying to understand you two. Its broody one moment and the next you are both singing cumbia. What’d I miss?”

Rocky had stepped in front of Adam so he could not see the expression on his face, “I told Adam.”

Aisha craned her head and froze with a wide eyed expression of horror on her face, “told him what?”

“That I’m gay,” Rocky stated plainly.

Relaxing instantly, Aisha breathed a heavy sigh and placed a hand on her chest, “I’m so glad I don’t have to hide that a secret anymore.”

“Also, Adam is bi,” Rocky quickly spouted.

“What!?” she strode forward and pushed Rocky aside. Digging her exasperated stare into Adam, she exaggerated, “you weren’t gonna share with the whole class, Adam?”

Adam mumbled to no one in particular, “I thought it was my prerogative to tell.”

Rocky grabbed Aisha almost jerking her around like some sort of doll, “yes, he was gonna tell you, but, do you think you could give us a few more minutes privacy?” He tensed up and gestured slightly, signaling something to Aisha.

Whatever Rocky tried to convey worked because Aisha perked up. Straightening her back and clapping her hands together she stumbled over her words, “well, you know, I forgot to pay for the drinks. I don’t need Cindy yelling at me again for forgetting to pay the tab. You know, still owe for a couple other visits.”

Crossing his arms and tilting his head to the side, Rocky narrowed his gaze to say, “Wait, you skipped out without paying before?” Adam was just as confused by this whole situation.

“Yeah, so I’m gonna go take care of that. Now,” she gave a threatening nod toward Rocky.

Responding animatedly, “oh yeah, no totally. You, uh, should go take care of that.” Rocky almost shooed her away as Aisha turned and bolted for the door. Why did it feel like Adam was still missing something important?

Suddenly, Rocky strode up to Adam, facing him. There was a moment of hesitation expressed on his face as Adam bit his lower lip. Rocky, clutching his shoulder, softly spoke, “I need to tell you something else.”

“What is it?” Adam felt immediate dread, trying to scramble for what Rocky could possibly say next.

“So, this is probably just me rushing into this without thinking it through, but while I have the courage now, I need to ask you,” Rocky trailed off.

Adam stiffened at the tone Rocky adopted, crossing his arms, “You can ask me anything.” His stomach dropped at the uncertainty of the situation.

“When you said if I had a type, well I do have one. I really like this guy but I don’t know if he feels the same as I do,” he shrugged his shoulders and sheepishly looked at Adam; some deep emotion was buried beneath the facade. However, Adam felt his stomach lighten. Rocky just had a crush on somebody.

“Well, who is he? Maybe I can help find out for you,” Adam suggested, thinking of whom at the school or dojo Rocky would find attractive. If only he knew what Rocky’s type was.

Rocky laughed, “Well, it’s kind of ironic cause the guy I am interested in is…”

All of a sudden the ground shook and the sound of an explosion set off from the direction of the plaza. The sounds of broken glass and people screaming came from the café. Cars honked and the sound of metal crashing resounded through the alleyway they stood in. A loud bang came from the wall ahead of them, startling Rocky and himself.

“Aisha!” Adam yelled. Rocky patted Adam’s back and they ran back toward the café.

Adam ran into the door trying to open it. It would not budge. “It’s stuck!”

“Here let me try!” Rocky yelled. Adam moved out of the way as Rocky tried to bust through but with little success.

Adam looked toward the plaza. Smoke and fire began rising in the air, masking the space ahead of them and making it difficult to indicate what was happening. He shouted at Rocky, “Let’s go around to the front!”

“We heard glass break right? Maybe the windows shattered?” Rocky commented more than actually inquired.

As both of them rounded the corner, they abruptly stopped. Adam’s eyes widened in shock as his mind attempted to process the image in front of him. The plaza was in shambles. Half of the fountain was destroyed causing water to flood onto the streets. Cars had collided with each other while vehicles on the opposite side of the plaza were set ablaze; Adam guessed that is where the destruction originated. Several buildings had structural damage or busted windows, stone and glass littering the ground and or lodged in businesses. Chunks of asphalt were torn up from the ground that left cracks and holes in the streets. Citizens were fleeing the scene, frightened and attempting to seek refuge. A strange murmur began to fill the air.

Rocky was the first to move as he passed Adam, heading to the café on their left. Adam heard him yell, “Aisha, where are you!? Are you alright!?”

The sound of glass crunching beneath feet and objects scraping the ground tore at Adam’s stomach. Snapping his attention away from the plaza, he moved to the windows of the café where Rocky just entered. He gasped as he saw the wrecked establishment. A place that was once a sanctuary of sorts was now in ruins. Some debris, chunks of asphalt, and pieces of metal defaced the property. Furniture was damaged and tossed around. The bar had been smashed inward where metal and wood had flown into it. Some powerful force had to have shot the through the area to cause this much damage.

Somebody was pinned beneath the wreckage with an arm jutting out, blood smeared across it; Adam assumed the person was dead. A couple people were cowering against the back corner, scrapes and blood covering their bodies, while the rest were still recovering from the incident, making their condition indeterminable for the moment. Rocky was over where the bar fed into the farthest wall of the building, knelt beside Aisha and examining her.

Adam rushed over to his friends as he heard Aisha cough out, “Yeah! Where’s Adam!?”

“I’m right here, Aisha! I’m fine.” Adam felt a lump of panic rise in his throat. Aisha appeared to have suffered a few nicks and maybe a bruise, nothing as serious as it could have been. As Adam continued to assess the situation, the murmuring from earlier began echoing louder. Looking out toward the plaza, he saw several figures appear in between wisps of smoke. ”What the…” Adam was at a loss for words.

The figures were not human. They were bulky with their appearance akin to stone, or maybe they actually _were_ stone. Adam attempted to regulate his breathing in order to remain calm. He had no idea what or where those monstrosities came from or what he could do to help get his friends out of this situation. His instincts kicked in, commanding him to stay hidden. Inching toward the window, Adam peered around some cover to obtain a clearer perspective of the street. There were four, maybe five of the hulking creatures clambering around the plaza, knocking large stones and broken cars around effortlessly.

A hand was placed on Adam’s back making him jump out of his skin and clasping his mouth to keep from shrieking too loud. It was only Rocky, “Jesus, Rocky, don’t scare me like that!” he lectured quietly.

“Sorry,” Rocky retorted. Leaning in closer he spoke softly into Adam’s ear, “what do you think those things are?” A hint of fear laced his words.

“I’ve got no idea.”

All of a sudden a shriek filled the enclosed strip and a young woman, maybe only Rocky and Adam’s age, bolted through the center of the fountain square. Another of those monsters stayed on her tail, a speed not expected from a hulking creature. As the girl ran past the fountain, Adam saw her slip on the watery surface and knocked her head against a broken fragment of the reservoir. She pushed herself up and glanced behind her. Screaming again, she stumbled aimlessly to escape from the creature. However, her apparent injury slowed her down as the monster smacked her forward, her body landing harshly onto a damaged car. She went limp and silent. The stone creature was not finished as it approached the body, lifting its leg and smashing down with full force onto the woman. Disgusting sounds squelched from beneath the monster’s weight as spurts of blood shot from the now undiscernible body. It made Adam’s stomach lurch as Rocky gagged behind him.

Theses monsters intended to kill anyone they saw and luckily they had not been spotted. Who knows how long their fortune would remain. Adam remained crouched and looked around the café foyer. The horrified looks on everyone’s faces concluded his speculations. He also knew what had to be done. Adam had to somehow protect these citizens. In some manner, he had to distract the creatures enough in order to lead them away from the building. It might easily be the most reckless decision ever made, but Adam was not the only one thinking it.

“Hey, Adam, we gotta keep them away from these people,” Rocky placed a hand on his shoulder.

Adam reached up and squeezed Rocky’s hand, nodding in agreement. He looked around and commanded in a low tone, “everyone stay hidden in here and whatever you do, don’t come out.”

“Like hell you are!” Aisha had stood up but Adam noticed Aisha favoring her leg and leaned up against the bar. “You cannot go out there alone and play the hero.”

“He isn’t going alone.” Rocky kept his hand on Adam’s shoulder, gripping it tight in response, “I’m going with him.”

“We have to do this, Aisha, or all of us could be in danger.” Adam built onto the argument Rocky was starting.

Aisha shook her head, “then I’m going with you.” as she lifted herself off the bar, she moved a couple of feet before her leg buckled under her. She cried in pain but Rocky was there instantly to catch her.

Lowering her on the floor behind a fallen table, Rocky cupped the side of her face and placed a kiss on her forehead, “we’ll be back in a little bit. I can’t let my little sister get hurt.” He snickered at Aisha and received a grin in return. Aisha mockingly punched Rocky in the arm.

Adam raised himself up and walked over to Aisha. The behavior his two best friends were exhibiting tugged at his heart. They were not marching off to their deaths. It angered Adam but he was more scared than anything. Who knew what could happen in the next few minutes. Her expression was blank as she gazed up at Adam, then over to Rocky.

“If I have to jump in there in and outshine you guys, you are gonna wish those monsters got to you first.” She choked back a tear and put a fist in the air. Rocky stood and placed cupped his hands around Aisha. Adam followed suite by placing a hand on top of theirs.

“Together,” Adam affirmed as a thin smile graced his lips.

Aisha perked up at the familiar chant the three of them created years ago. “Forever,” she continued.

“And always,” Rocky finished, his signature smile spread wide across his features. Rocky broke the shake and tugged at Adam nodding, “let’s go, buddy.”

“Aisha,” Adam began, “when you see those monsters drift away from the area, try and get the others out of here, or find help.” He looked down at her leg, “ do you think you will be able to move?”

“Yeah,” she moved her leg and held her breath, “it isn’t broken, I just banged my knee pretty well.” She exhaled. “Once the pain resides, I’ll take care of these people. You boys just worry about keeping yourselves safe.”

Adam mockingly saluted her, “yes ma’am.” He turned to see Rocky crouched outside of the establishment.

Adam mirrored the response by hopping over the windowsill and landing on the sidewalk, glass crunching beneath them. The smell of smoke was overpowering Adam’s senses; however, the sound of sirens filled the air. “Looks like help is headed our way, Rocky,” Adam commented as he exchanged looks with Rocky, counting his blessings. Looking around, he saw five monsters patrolling the area in front of them. One stopped and noticed the two of them standing within their perimeter. The creature focused on them and began rumbling deeply as it appeared to notion to the others of its kind. Adam began formulating a plan in his head. “Rocky, I got an idea, but we have to be quick!”

Rocky moved closer to Adam but they were distracted by a fierce growl that shot through the sky. A deep voice followed, “Find the green ranger! Kill anyone that stands in the way!” A flash of gold appeared and left somewhere within the blazing wreckage as quickly as the voice finished speaking, the attention of the stone monsters were drawn in the same direction.

“What the hell was that? You heard that right, Adam?” Rocky questioned frantically, positioning himself into a fighting stance.

“Looks like things won’t lack for interest around here,” Adam humorously chided. Then, he readied himself as well. “First, we need to make it to the other side of the fountain, to divert their attention away from the café. Then, we fight.”

“And if we can’t seem to do any damage?” Rocky glanced toward Adam awaiting the next course of action.

“Then we retreat into one of the alleyways on the north or east side of the strip and take shelter.” Adam held Rocky’s gaze until he acknowledged Adam in agreement.

“Alright here we go!” Adam shot off toward the fountain. As he got within proximity to one of the creatures, Adam performed a jump kick, knocking the creature backwards from the momentum. A second enclosed Adam but it joined its twin on the ground that was caused by a flying side kick from Rocky. Rocky grinned at Adam as he returned the smile. Looking forward, they managed to catch the attention of the other monsters as they began their own charge.

Veering to the side, Adam slid across the hood of a car and hopped over broken stone from the fountain. The sound of metal bending behind him confirmed Rocky was close behind him. Once they had reached the center of the plaza, Adam could better see the extent of the damage to the city. Everything in close proximity to and within the plaza was devastated, torn asunder like a battlefield. Rocky lined up beside Adam as the remaining three shoved debris away that was on their path with little effort.

“You ready to do this, Adam!” Rocky rallied.

 “Yeah,” Adam balled his fist in front of him, furrowing his brows in anger, “I don’t know what these things are, but they are attacking _our_ town,” He cast his hand aside and readied his guard for the imminent fight.

“Let’s go!” Rocky shouted. With Adam watching his flank, they charged the monsters that were barreling toward them.


	6. Adam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra chapter! I've been so excited to get to this chapter. I had a rough draft of the end scene in this chapter done close to when I first started writing the story. Enjoy!

Adam’s heart was racing. Two of the three upright creatures came at Rocky and himself first. They rolled out of the way as one of the monsters charged through while the other stopped in its tracks. Adam landed to have the stationary creature swing an arm at him. He ducked barely in time to dodge the attack, feeling a gust of wind above him. If that blow had collided, Adam knew it would have done serious damage. After catching himself, Adam rotated around to gain a better perspective of their enemy. Isolated, the creature was more humanoid in shape and a foot taller than he was. Since they appeared to be made of stone, Adam assumed it would be hard to do much damage.

Rocky had made first contact, performing a jump front kick, knocking the creature off balance. Adam took advantage. He charged at the beast and did a flying side kick, knocking the creature into some nearby debris. The kick did not hurt as much as he prepared himself for. It was definitely similar to kicking a wall, but the lack of balance must have helped tremendously. Rocky rotated his right foot and commented, “That hurt more than I thought it would.”

“We have to play it smart,” Adam commented.

“Adam, watch out!” Rocky had shouted the warning but it was a second too late as the second creature knocked into Adam like a freight train and sent him flying. “Adam!” Rocky screamed frantically.

The next few seconds seemed to slow down. He felt the air in his lungs pushed out and his left side ached but he could not assess any damage until his feet touched ground again. Bracing for the inevitable impact, an unknown entity tackled him mid-air, catching him from the side and landed on the ground. The being, what felt like a person, set him down, “Are you ok?” a muffled female voice asked. As Adam looked up he saw a womanly figure adorned in a pink suit and helmet, white diamonds etched into the uniform and what appeared to be a gun in its holster around her belt.

It took a few seconds to register her question as he pushed himself up and nodded to her, “yeah I’m fine, Agh!” Adam yelped in pain, clutching his side.

“Careful! You took a pretty good hit. Go find shelter. I’ll take care of these monsters.” The pink soldier commanded. She stood up and waved for him to go to the other side where intact buildings stood. Adam winced but pushed the pain down, “my friend, Rocky, is over there! I have to help him!”

The pink warrior placed a hand on his chest, “I know you want to help, Adam, but I need you to go take cover. I’ll rescue them.”

“Wait, how do you know my name?” the fact this person knew his name stunned Adam in his place.

The warrior retracted her hand quickly and provided a delayed response, “I, I don’t know.” There was silence for a moment. Since he could not see a face, it was hard to determine what her reaction to the situation was, if she was even human. What also piqued his curiosity was this was the third person, or entity, that had some strong physical aversion when they touched him. He pushed the out the thought as he had more immediate matters at hand.

“We need to help Rocky. Then, we can discuss this.” Adam lifted himself up, forcing the pain from his mind. He would have to hope the pain would subside quickly. Nothing felt broken but his nerves flared as if they were on fire from the contact he suffered. Pushing forward, Adam noticed the woman follow his movements.

“Are you really, Adam Park? I, we, are looking for him.” She stood still as Adam glanced back at her. He was wary, though he did not feel any danger posed from her. Regardless, Adam was reluctant to discuss the matter further until Rocky was safe. Each second wasted kept Rocky in further danger.

“If you are going to help, then fight with me. Otherwise, I have no further business with you,” he hobbled toward Rocky who was somersaulting away from a third figure that entered the fight. He looked like he was wearing out quickly.

Adam heard the warrior yell, “Move!” at Rocky. As Adam glanced over his shoulder to anticipate her actions, the warrior vaulted toward the monsters. Looking back at Rocky, Adam saw his face light up in surprise, yet his instincts apparently kicked in as Rocky set himself to gain distance from the fight that was about to ensue.

The pink warrior moved in a flash of pink light. She flew into one of the monsters with a kick, sending it flying into a pair of wrecked vehicles behind it. The resounding crash shot through the air. One of the creatures swung at her, but it was too slow as she dodged beneath the blow and uppercut the beast, then landing a double palm strike on its chest. The creature shattered instantly. Its companion hurdled into her, throwing her onto the ground. A fighter, she threw herself up off the pavement. Reaching into her holster, she pulled out the gun and shot the creature’s head clean off. As soon as it hit the ground, it crumbled into pieces of stone where it once stood. The warrior holstered her gun and held out a hand, an elegant pink and white bow forming in her hand as if she willed it into existence.

The two monsters Rocky and Adam had knocked to the ground earlier were spry again as they charged to the battlefield. Twin arrows appeared as she drew the bowstring back. Then, as quickly as she drew the weapon, she released the arrows and they sought their targets, hitting both creatures dead in the center of their chests. They stood still and collapsed into piles of rubble. She tossed the bow in the air and it disappeared instantly. Walking gracefully over to the final creature attempting to recover from its crash landing, she pulled out her gun again. With the flick of her wrist, it extended into a blade and she drove it down into the belly of the beast. Twisting it into the creature, it jerked momentarily, before turning limp. Then, an unexplainable phenomenon happened as the monster beneath the pink warrior’s blade and the other four stone beings turned into sand and blew away with the wind.

There was a moment of silence that Rocky eventually broke, “Uh, thanks for the help, but who are you?” He moved slowly toward the pink soldier. Adam had detected the excitement in Rocky’s voice, imaging how he must be gawking internally at the warrior in front of them. Adam did not blame him. She defeated those monsters with such ease where as two of their full-forced kicks barely knocked one of them off its feet.

Standing up, she sheathed her blade. Her hands rose to the side of her helmet and she flipped the clasps on it. Lifting the object off her head, a train of fair, brown hair fell upon her shoulders. Turning around to face Adam and Rocky, she shook her head as hair wisped around the frame of a young face. It was a woman about their age, hazel eyes set into a soft, round face. However, she wielded a hardened expression. She had definitely been built into a soldier as she carried a certain aura of strength about her. Stepping toward Rocky and himself, she introduced herself, “I’m Kimberly, but you can call me, Kim, for short.”

Rocky must have realized Adam was not beside him because he instantly forgot the woman in front of him as he searched the area for Adam frantically.  Then, he laid eyes on his target. Rushing to Adam’s side, Rocky wrapped his arms around his friend. Adam jerked in response as the pain in his left side flared again. “Ow! Shit.” Adam gasped and clutched his side.

“Fuck! I’m sorry, Adam. How bad is it? Let me look,” Rocky tenderly touched the spot, making Adam hiss. The light contact did not hurt but the area was still sensitive.

“Sorry, it’s not as bad as I’m making it seem.” The cringe Adam made did not convince Rocky.

“You’re a terrible liar,” a disgruntled look covered Rocky’s face as he continued to focus on Adam’s side. “We need to get that checked out. Shit, I’m sorry Adam. I was careless. I should have paid more attention. It’s my fault you got hurt.”

Adam did not understand where the sudden guilt came from, “I’ll be fine, Rock, really.” Adam lifted a hand to grip Rocky’s shoulder, “are you ok, Rocky? You did the best you could. We both did. There is no way you could have known what they were going to do.”

“Yeah, but…”

Adam heard footsteps approach them, “you are both lucky to be alive. Why did you charge in the middle of them? You both could have suffered worse,” Kimberly reprimanded.

“We couldn’t risk those monsters attacking the people over in the café,” Rocky pointed in the business’ direction.

“They’re called Putties. And as admirable as that thought may be, it was still reckless. You can’t do that again if you expect to survive on the battlefield.” Kimberly’s lips soured at the last comment.

Observing their mysterious ally, Rocky retorted, “But you’re just a teen like us.”

Adam interrupted their bickering, “Putties? What are putties?” That question rendered Rocky quiet.

In front of them Kimberly adjusted her stance, tucking her helmet underneath her left arm, “they are some type of stone creature, created by Rita. Those are the easy monsters. There are worse things. I think those are probably just the easiest for her to throw at us.”

“What do you mean ‘us’?” Rocky asked. “Are there others like you?” Adam shifted in his spot curious as well.

“There are six of us. Or at least there were…” her words tapered off as she looked away and became lost in thought. The moment of weakness was short lived as she looked up with resolve, “ We are the Power Rangers.”

“The, Power Rangers?” Adam hesitated. “Who are they?”

Rocky laughed abruptly, “What kind of name is the Power Rangers?”

“The kind that saved your butts,” Kim replied sharply.

Rocky raised his hands in surrender, “touché.”

Adam suddenly pieced the eerily similar reactions together when Kimberly placed a hand on his chest with Rocky and Aisha’s weird physical responses to him earlier in the day. “So when you saved me, how did you know my name? Why did you jerk your hand away?” Adam faced her determined to find the answer. Something tugged at him in the back of his mind, like he was delving into something bigger than he knew. Adam noticed Rocky become tense when he addressed the question.

Kimberly looked down at her free hand and paused for a moment before looking up to say, “I don’t know. It just happened when I touched you earlier. It was as if somebody was feeding me information in my head.”

Rocky’s reply was oddly serious, “what happened when you touched, Adam?” His focus did not waiver from Kimberly.

Surprised, Adam turned toward Rocky and interrogated him, “wait, what do you mean, what happened, Rocky?”

Rocky paused briefly, not looking at Adam. Mimicking an examination of his hand, Rocky began to explain, “Well, I’ve been noticing, specifically today, that sometimes when I touch you...”

“Something similar happened to Aisha in class earlier, too, didn’t it?” Adam’s mind raced. The erratic jerked responses Rocky, Aisha, and now Kimberly displayed, was that because of him? What was happening to all of them? And then suddenly this freak attack happens and some ‘superhero’ group appears. His dream flashed to mind. It had to be connected somehow. This whole situation could not be coincidence.

“Adam, what are you…” Kimberly began before a familiar low growl shook the ground and pulled the three of them from their conversation.

Adam and Rocky gasped as they stepped back together and positioned into fighting stances. Another monster was walking toward them, only this one had gold hard plated skin that looked like armor. Broad wings adorned the creature’s back with jet black feathers. It’s face had the appearance of an ape. The monster brandished a golden broadsword in its hand. With a low rumble it spoke, “Ah the pink power ranger. Time to kill another ranger on the list. Rita, will name me her grand general when I kill one more than Scorpina.”

Kimberly’s body grew tense and began to shake. With a fluid motion she clasped her belt and a flash of pink surrounded her. Within that brief second, her helmet was back on and her sword equipped, “how dare you! This is for my friends, Goldar!” She leapt at the monster and a loud clang resounded with such force as the impact of the two swords clashed. “How dare you talk about them!”

“Ah ha ha ha, this will be fun, pink ranger,” with that statement he thrusted her off and raised his sword, “Putties, attack!”

A group of five Putties arose from the ground and a heavy murmur filled the air. The Putties noticed Adam and Rocky and charged toward them. They leapt in separate directions as the Putties barred the space between them. The pain pulled at Adam causing him to kneel in place.

“Run, Adam! I’ll find you! Just get somewhere safe!” Rocky shouted as he fled from the monsters. “Meet me over there!” Adam saw Rocky point toward the north side of the plaza where the largest department store stood. That would be a good place to lose the monsters if they could get inside.

Adam stood up to turn and run. Before taking off, he yelled back, “be safe, Rocky! I’ll meet you there!” then he let his feet dictate his actions.

“Dammit!” he cursed aloud. He began running toward the east side of the plaza but pain shot up as he exerted himself. Adam almost fell but caught himself on an adjacent car. He could hear the footsteps coming toward him. He had to keep moving. Luckily there was a group of abandoned cars between him and the sidewalk. Squatting down low Adam weaved between cars and forced himself to keep momentum, hoping his adrenaline would carry him to safety. He stayed hidden to keep his location hard to determine from those Putties. He reached the other side quickly. Adam peered over the bed of a truck to see the Putties lose interest in the chase. Simultaneously, Kimberly was fighting the golden beast, Goldar, which was an appropriate name all things considered. He spotted Rocky run north of the plaza as a couple of the Putties had chased after him. They stopped once Rocky got a certain distance.

Figuring it would be easier to regroup with Rocky, now, while he had the chance, Adam slowed down to feel the pain catch up to him. He limped over to the sidewalk before stumbling up against the wall of a building. The pain was worse now. Maybe it was something more serious. He pulled up his shirt to see dark splotches of purple and blue trail up his side. Adam gave a large sigh, wincing as he exhaled. However, he could not stop now. He lifted himself up and hugged the front of the buildings. He was able to set a steady pace by using the support to help mitigate the pain. Adam continued along until he reached an alleyway headed northeast of the plaza.

All of sudden Adam felt something wrong, yet altogether familiar. Debris provided an uneasy passage down this path. There was no further damage or signs of any monsters in this direction as the overhang of buildings appeared to be intact. Suddenly, he felt an energy tug at him, instructing him to follow this road. Adam let his intuition guide him as it guided him along. He edged his way around the debris until a clear picture came into view. Focusing his eyes, Adam saw a woman in black robes, with hair draped down to her hips pulled back into a ponytail, speaking to something, or someone, in front of her.

“Oh, Tommy,” came the words from a melodious yet sinisterly laced voice. Adam gasped when he realized with whom the woman was speaking. She held a man by the throat that was clad in green with gold plated armor on his torso; it was similar to Kimberly’s suit he saw earlier. Instead of a helmet, there was a man with chestnut colored hair and he was attempting to pry off the woman’s tight grip. Meanwhile, the woman rested her other hand against the man’s temple. Her palm glowed with a dark, green and black shadow as the man continued to fight in her grasp, steadily losing his will to fight.

“This is what happens when you scorn what precious gifts I bequeathed unto you. Your new alliance cost your friends the war. Look at what happened: two dead and you groveling in front of your queen. You thought you could hide from me.” She paused examining the man’s feature, “I see you everywhere, Tommy. I hear your thoughts. I feel the energy you call upon.” She leaned into him smelling his hair and smiling, “I _am_ the green ranger. That power is mine. I gave you a fraction of my power in a form you could wield. You longed for greatness, and I molded you into something better. This power that you stole will return to me, now, making me stronger.”

Adam was frightened, rooted to the spot. He recognized this woman, this color, this warrior in front of him: it all made sense. He had envisioned it in his dream. That voice in his dream was hers! His mind was hazy from the shock of the realization. Maybe he was supposed to be led here. However, he could not allow his emotions and thoughts to rule his body and mind while this man suffered. Adam had to help save this person from this _witch_ somehow. “Hey! Let him go!” Adam shouted, gaining control and confidence, until the woman turned to stare at him.

“Look, Tommy, our guest of honor has arrived. Looks like you can watch this would-be ranger die because of you as well.” She tossed the warrior to the ground and the armor vanished, leaving a man who couldn’t have been much older than him on the ground with nothing except a green sweatshirt and jeans. The woman absorbed the light into her hand, closing her eyes and gleaming wickedly as if the energy was giving her delight.  A slight moan caressed her lips as she shook all over. “This feels so much better than I imagined.” Her dress pulled tight against her body as that same green shadow started wrapping around her feet, crawling slowly up her body. As the shadow scaled higher, the parts below began to turn a dark hue of green and grow thick like steel, protecting the witch’s body like armor, until she was adorned completely in it. A golden crown formed around her head with a coin embedded in it and a scepter appeared behind her. She opened her hand and appeared to call to it as the staff glided into her hand. She examined her fingernails, commenting, “I have to give Zordan credit for the additional power. Maybe now I can pay him a personal visit…”

“Who, who are you?” Adam tried to sound intimidating, but he was not even convincing himself.

A shrill laugh filled the area, “You know who I am, Adam. However, if you insist a formal introduction, you shall have one.” She bowed slowly, hair falling forward toward her feet and a steady, fierce gaze locked onto Adam, “I am Rita. Rita Repulsa.”


	7. Rocky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for a slight delay. I had to make a lot of revisions and I had hella (#chloeprice) quizzes and a paper to do. I can say I'm extremely pleased with how this chapter ended versus how it originally started out as. Enjoy!

Rocky ran as fast as his feet could take him as the Putties trailed behind him. Even at the expense of his own safety, all he could think was, _Please be safe, Adam. Please be safe._ He had reached the street on the north side of the plaza. Quickly turning to face his enemy, the Putties were no longer in sight. Looking around the vicinity, he noticed Adam supporting himself against the buildings along the east side, steadily making his way north. Rocky hoped that the monsters would remain distracted enough to allow time for Adam and himself to seek refuge.

Another loud roar bolted in the distance behind him. Rocky glanced at the fountain to see that Kimberly was still engaged in battle against the creature, Goldar. The Putties were steadily encroaching upon her now. Rocky knew that even with her strength, Kimberly would be vastly outnumbered.

 _Dammit I have to help her._ Rocky immediately decided; there were no second thoughts. Peering at Adam again, Rocky silently prayed that everything would go well: he would be able to aid Kimberly and retreat in time to meet up with Adam before any other monsters appeared.

Rocky ran headlong toward the site of the battle. With a bit of luck, he would obtain the element of surprise and knock a couple Putties to the ground before they reached Kimberly. The closest Putty was within range and Rocky initiated his plan with a blunt kick to the back of the creature. It fell hard onto the asphalt. Two of the other Putties turned immediately and spotted Rocky. They launched their counterattack. Rocky braced himself for the onslaught; however, one of the vertical monsters tripped and fell on its comrade. The other circled around them.

“Not too bright are you. That can work in my favor at least,” Rocky charged in retaliation.

The lone Putty raised an arm preparing to club Rocky. He swiftly maneuvered beneath the swing. With a leap and a kick to the side of the creature, it joined its friends on the ground. Rocky jested while shrugging sarcastically, “you guys don’t have very good balance either. Who knew you would be exceptional domino players.”

“Rocky! What are you doing! It’s too dangerous for you here!” Kimberly had yelled as she shoved Golder back and vaulted toward Rocky.

Suddenly, a woman leapt in front of him and pushed him backward. Rocky caught himself and back flipped into another fighting stance. With arms raised, he assessed his new enemy. She appeared to be a human woman adorned in a gold metallic brassier, helm and left gauntlet with a red tunic and yellow leggings. She wielded a large bladed boomerang in her right hand. The outfit was a bit unorthodox for a fight but this woman probably knew how to beat his ass into the ground.

“So where did you get that outfit? Raid a Halloween store?” Rocky mocked his adversary.

She offered a curt smile and laughed, long black hair tousling in the wind, “Brave little man with a sense of humor. Handsome, too. Probably a lack of brains though.” Her posture was very relaxed. That was not a welcoming sign.

“It’s ok, lady. You aren’t my type either,” Rocky retorted. If he could keep her talking, that would enable Kimberly to catch up to him, hopefully. He added to his previous insult, “A little _too_ old for my tastes.”

All humor left Scorpina’s face and her face hardened. _Shit maybe taunting her wasn’t the best idea, Rocky,_ he chagrined.

“Well maybe we should get to know each a little better with a dance?” She crouched into position, poised and ready to strike.

Rocky raised an eyebrow and attempted to keep the charade going, “don’t you think that’s a little formal for the first date? I mean I don’t even know your name yet.”

“Ah ha ha,” the woman laughed, amused, “for making me laugh, I will allow you to learn my name before I kill you. Scorpina.” She shifted her weight ready to leverage herself against him. “Too bad. You would have made a cute pet.”

Scorpina blew a kiss and then leapt through the air. She swiped at Rocky with her bladed boomerang as he barely leaned back in time to dodge it. Following up her attack, Scorpina attacked with a left jab in which Rocky deflected with an outside kick. Then, he performed a spinning kick, landing a blow to her abdomen. Scorpina took a couple steps back, grabbing her stomach and catching her breath.

It was Scorpina’s turn to joke, “Heh, you are more than just a pretty face, human.”

“It’s Rocky. Only fair you know my name before I beat you,” Rocky smiled as he saw Kimberly about to enter the scuffle.

“Aw, how cute your delusions of, Agh!” Scorpina was flung to the ground with a sudden kick to the side of her face.

Kimberly caught up to Rocky and reprimanded him, “Why did you come back?”

“I couldn’t just leave you behind. Adam would have done the same,” Rocky imagined he was able to prove his point when she eventually nodded in response.

“Ok then. This is how we are going to take them down,” Kimberly pumped her arms in front of her. In the blink of an eye, she yelled, “Watch out!” and shoved Rocky away.

Scorpina was erect and flung a stinger attached to what appeared to be a scorpion tail from underneath her hair. It was aimed straight at Rocky. However, due to Kim’s intervention, he was able to roll to their right flank, landing upright. Looking over his shoulder, Rocky saw Kimberly had somersaulted away. Scorpina was ready to launch another attack when a warrior similar to Kimberly, only dressed in yellow, jumped into the battle and swiped at Scorpina’s stinger with twin daggers, separating it from the demon’s body.

The yellow ranger faced Scorpina and stared, “Scorpina, you will pay for everything you have done, against this town and my friends!” The yellow warrior charged in and dueled Scorpina, the clashing of metal reverberated off their blades. They moved against each other in a flurry; Rocky could barely keep up.

Rocky backed away from the fight as murmurs rose in the air around them again. The three Putties from earlier had surrounded Kimberly and Rocky. One of them attempted to grab Kimberly, but it reeled back as she fisted the monster’s face, followed by a back kick. However, a second tackled her; Rocky heard her scream, “Ah! Get off me, ugly!”

The remained Putty, along with its recovered compatriot, focused their attention on Rocky. He sighed, “Well, looks like it’s my turn to fight again.” He raised his fists, and not a second too late, one of the Putties charged him, throwing a punch. Rocky barely avoided it as he connected a kick to the creature’s torso. It halted in its advance as the other came to its assistance. Rocky quickly shuffled to land a side kick against the upcoming Putty. It was thrown back but the first monster retaliated and punched Rocky in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. He fell to his knees gasping for air. Looking up Rocky saw the two Putties rearing a foot each to stomp him into the pavement. He looked away and squeezed his eyes shut ready for his end.

Suddenly, a deep masculine voice echoed behind him, shouting, “Not today creeps!”

Something registered in him, adrenaline commanding his body to flee from his current position. As soon as he rolled out of the way, a loud crack originated from his previous spot. Rocky held his gut as he looked at the Putties. One of them was cleaved clear in half. The one responsible was a third ranger, this one red and grasping an ornately designed handle with a long steel blade that protruded from the hilt. The remaining piece of the monster fell backward as the red ranger swiped his sword to the left, lopping off the head of the other monster and kicked it square in the chest, sending it flying through the air.

Out of nowhere, a stray Putty initiated combat with the warrior in red as it collided into him, the sword flung from his hands and landed beside Rocky. Rocky immediately picked up the sword and charged toward the monster, thrusting the sword and piercing its stone chest. The warrior recovered his balance and punched the Putty directly in the face. Rocky let go allowing the ranger to pull the sword out. The warrior spun and cut into the stone, separating the torso from its legs. The last Putty fell apart as the three bodies exploded into dust.

The red ranger turned to Rocky and offered his arm out, “Thanks for the help man!”

Rocky clasped his forearm and shook his head, smiling, “yeah, anytime.”

“Stay here and don’t get involved in the fight. Scorpina is too dangerous,” with that the warrior in red charged toward the yellow ranger and yelled, “Hold on, Trini!”

Another crack indicated Kimberly had dealt with her opponent. She raced up to Rocky and placed a hand on him, “You ok?”

Anticipating another possible attack, Rocky responded quickly, “Yeah I’m ok. The red guy helped me out.” He gestured to the direction of the two rangers engaged in combat with his thumb.

“Good. I’m glad Jason caught up to us,” Kimberly sounded relieved to see her comrades.

“Hey where’s Goldar?” Rocky questioned while looking around, “Did you beat him?”

Kimberly tensed and examined the battlefield; however, there was no sight of the creature. Adjusting her attention back to Rocky she warned, “I don’t know. Keep your guard up. He’s as dumb as a bag of bricks, but he is a force to be reckoned with.”

Rocky nodded and saw Scorpina had leapt onto the roof of a nearby building. She glared at the four of them, yet had an eerie smile as she shouted, “Looks like you win this round Rangers. Don’t be surprised though if you lose another one of your members, hah! Tah tah for now!” She waved a hand and disappeared in a burst of yellow flames.

“Wait how’d she do that? And what exactly is going on here?” Rocky bared his questions down on Kimberly.

“Look I don’t know myself why they are attacking Stone Canyon, but,” Kimberly began before being interrupted by Rocky.

“You know, cause it’s seemingly a lot to me that it’s your guys’ fault that everything is happening. What are they here for?” Rocky had not realized he raised his voice and was angry, waving his hands in the air. _None of this makes any sense, and if anything happens to Adam_ , Rocky contemplated before a familiar masculine voice reemerged.

“We are here looking for a man named, Tommy. But it would be a lie if I said that was only half the reason.” The red ranger appeared before Rocky and unclasped his helmet to reveal a handsome broad face with brown eyes and cropped hair. His expression was serious yet he spoke in a very friendly manner, “name’s Jason. You, Adam?”

 _Damn, he is hot_ , Rocky shook his head, trying to keep looking so dumbfounded, and replied, “No, my name is Rocky. I’m Adam’s friend.” He paused, “Wait, how do you know about Adam?”

“Kimber told me.” Jason gestured to Kimberly.  “You know, you would make a good ranger,” Jason said as he sized up Rocky, causing Rocky to blush. Almost immediately after he made the compliment, thin lips suddenly drew across Jason’s face. Rocky remembered Kimberly responded similarly when she mentioned other rangers earlier to Adam and himself.

The yellow ranger had walked up to the group, although her body was rigid and a stern voice escaped from her, “how could you say that!? And why are you two just taking off your helmets to strangers now? Isn’t it our code to remain hidden?”

“Trini, it’s not like that,” Kimberly interjected, trying to pacify the situation.

“No Kimberly, this is not just something we can fix. Zack is dead because of Rita. Everything started because Tommy was allowed onto the team,” Trini fervently continued her argument.

Jason raised his voice to match Trini’s, “that was everyone’s call. I don’t remember you saying anything against Tommy joining us.” Rocky backed away a couple feet feeling very uncomfortable with a group of superheroes yelling at each other. Besides the city was under attack and Adam was in danger too, more so even. They needed to hurry

“Zack is dead! There is nothing we can do about that,” Trini became quiet for a brief moment before continuing, “but I know that look Jason. Billy isn’t dead but you are eager to replace him.”

Jason turned a dark shade of red, looking enraged and ready to scream at the yellow ranger. A bright red aura flashed around him causing Rocky to flinch. He gazed at the female rangers but neither of them had budged. _Did anyone else see that?_ Rocky pondered. _Or just me?_

Somehow though, Jason was able to reign in his emotions. Rocky would not have been able to control himself if he was as livid as Jason appeared to be. The red ranger started with a slow yet even speech pattern, conveying his seriousness on the matter, “Billy is incapacitated for the moment. Who knows for how long? But I will say this,” he stepped up to Trini, “If Billy were able, he would tell us to have someone fill in for him so that we could protect the people from Rita. He may not be here nor may he be awake, but I have no doubt this is what he would want. Don’t you dare say otherwise again.”

Jason was intimidating in his current state, yet Trini appeared to be just as bold as she stood tall and continued to face him. The air was intoxicating to Rocky as he felt angry and could see wisps of red light flare off the two arguing figures. An uncontrollable surge of anger filled Rocky and as his skin felt hot and his body shook from the stimuli. Rocky did not know what prompted him, but he raced up to the two rangers and placed a hand on each should, shouting, “Stop! Stop fighting! We have bigger things to worry about! Just calm down!”

In an instant both Jason and Trini’s disposition completely changed as their bodies jolted then relaxed under his touch. The red wisps, now turned a pale blue, emitted a soft glow around the two bodies. Rocky felt all anger disperse from the area and the feelings of rage quelled within Rocky.  


Jason was the first to comment, appearing disoriented, “Rocky what did you do?”

“Yeah, I was furious with everything that has been going on and now, I just feel peace,” Trini had responded serenely.

Kimberly stepped up to Rocky. “I think I know what happened. Rocky face me,” she commanded.

Rocky nodded in agreement and let go of the others to face Kimberly directly. The pink ranger raised her hands and pressed them gently against Rocky’s temples. She instructed calmly, “Picture Adam in your mind.”

Rocky looked at Kimberly questioningly yet wielded to the strange request. He pictured Adam in his usual black shirt and shorts. Thick yet short curls brandished on his head. A faint smile caressed the image of Adam. Almond shaped eyes were staring at Rocky. It made his heart flutter as he was enamored with the man. Rocky shook the mental picture and thought, _I don’t see why she has me doing this. Sounds kind of stupid to me._

“It would feel stupid if I didn’t have a hunch of what I was doing,” Kim responded as if she read his mind. _Wait_ , Rocky said in his head.

“Yes, Rocky, I read your mind, and I also got a more than just a visual of Adam,” Kimberly casually stated, casting a quick smile and giving a wink. She acted as if reading someone’s mind was an ordinary occurrence. She stepped back to face the others and spoke, “When I touched Adam earlier, I got a stream of information about him. Like, I just knew without asking him. Same thing just now: I was able to see Rocky’s thoughts and mental images. I think Rocky was able to do something similar only with controlling your emotions.” She pointed at the two of them.

Jason could not suppress a laugh, “so what, you’re psychic now?” He glanced at Rocky and Kim with an eye brow raised.

“Weirder things have happened to us, Jase,” Kimberly deflected his skepticism.

“I mean, you could be a bad girl, ‘punk’ again,” Trini agreed with Kimberly while waving air quotes.

Kimberly froze and her face became red from embarrassment, “let’s not talk about that. Like, ever again.”

Rocky was tired of the charade. This conversation left Rocky with more questions than answers, but he had wasted enough time. He _had_ to find Adam. Turning on his heels Rocky shouted at the rangers, “look I have to find Adam. If you want our help, help me find him.”

“Wait Rocky!” Kimberly shouted after him but fell on deaf ears.

Retreating back to the north side of the plaza, he trotted along the sidewalk as he surveyed the area. Adam was nowhere in sight. Halting, he closed his eyes and breathed deeply thinking back to what Kimberly said. He was able to change Jason and Trini’s emotions. Recollecting on his interactions between Adam and Aisha, there were a couple moments where he felt an intense wave of emotion and his body responded on cue. Something had been clearly affecting his friends though. Maybe the emotion had to be strong enough? Then, he remembered seeing Adam’s aura, a shade of green, at the lake. It was similar to his perception of lights that he saw around the two rangers.

Rocky thought to himself, _ok this might be a long shot but let’s try to find Adam this way. Kimberly just concentrated right?_ He opened his eyes and tried to imagine seeing Adam and a green aura. Walking forward a few feet Rocky saw a blockage of debris in front of one of the alleyways. A scream echoed from behind the rubble. A flash of green with black wisps flashed, but somehow Rocky saw it through the debris.

  _Adam!_ Rocky knew instantly. Panicking, he propelled himself over to wreckage. _Hold on Adam. I’m coming._ With that thought, Rocky began to weave in-between the debris.


	8. Adam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter officially wraps up the Attack on Stone Canyon. I wrote chapter 7-9 together. After editing chapter 7 and rearranging and changing events, chapter 8 and 9 were combined. Therefore, this chapter is a little longer than usual. I wanted to go ahead and post this since I finished it and that way we can end a major event in the story. Enjoy!

Adam kept his eyes trained on Rita as she raised her body from the mocking bow she bestowed upon him. A wicked grin flicked across her face. Her gaze was trained on Adam as she studied him. Adam felt he was trapped in a cat and mouse situation. No matter how he looked at it, there was likely no chance of getting away from her, especially when Rita had some stake in him due to the Power Rangers and this mysterious Zordon. Adam was annoyed at feeling like he was a pawn in everyone’s grand scheme. This was his home turf yet the only clue he had was his dreams, premonitions. Adam had seen this witch, Rita, talking to him. He had heard this voice. The green warrior and the shadows were clear in front of him just moments ago. Only now, he was afraid of what would happen next.

One immediate question that sprang to mind, “why should I know you? I’ve never seen you before.” Beads of sweat began form above his brow as nerves set in.

“Ah ha, think you’re clever,” she swiped a finger in his direction while gliding over toward him, “you are a terrible liar. We’ve met before. You called out to me.”

Adam began to shake nervously as she continued to approach him. Rita stopped a mere foot away from him. She was surprisingly tall, towering a few inches above him. “I don’t know what you mean,” Adam replied.

“Oh, sweet child,” the witch began to circle around Adam, her prey, “you have power and it shines like a beacon in the realm between worlds. Though brief, you had a glimpse at, well, a version of me.”

“Aaagh!” Adam screamed. A sudden, sharp pain shot through Adam’s shoulder as Rita stood behind him, gripping Adam with a gloved hand adorned with talon-like nails. She pierced his flesh and dug deep, shoving him down to his knees; her strength overpowered Adam. He could not stop the tears flooding his eyes as the pain blinded his other senses.

Rita leaned into him whispering in his ear, “I believe this is where I introduced myself. I know you remember. I sense the same fear,” she trailed off then pushed him forward. Adam was barely able to brace himself from hitting asphalt as his palms slammed onto the pavement. He was scared, not as much from his predator, but from feeling helpless. Adam attempted to move, yet pain racked his body, reminding him of his injuries. His side ached from the erratic movements and now, any pressure placed on his shoulder stung. Adam would not be able to take much more punishment.

Footsteps circled around to stop in front of him. Rita had crouched down and jerked Adam’s face to look up at her. The staff she held was floating beside them. Her second hand caressed his hair as she brought her face within mere inches to his, her hot breath brushing his features. She lowered her voice, “I have plans for you Adam. I need a replacement and your gifts will suit me far better.”

With that comment she reached for the small medallion embedded in the tiara on her head and pulled it off, showing it to Adam. “I hate to part with this fraction of me so soon, but it will serve a better purpose. This part you envisioned. Your gift of sight granted from the Power combined with my essence will make you a far better successor than Tommy could ever imagine. Your feats will be praised by my army as I conquer, Zordon, once and for all.”

Adam refused to succumb to Rita’s whims. There were other ways to fight back and everything be damned if he did not at least show his spirit was not broken. Even though his body felt weaker with fatigue each second, Adam confronted Rita, “Whatever you have planned, you won’t get away with it. I won’t help you.”

Rita cackled wickedly, then pursed her lips together, “shush, my child.” She grazed a finger against his jawline. “Accept your fate, you will serve me.”

Adam jerked away from the gesture and spat back, “I don’t know. This Zordon you keep mentioning seems to be a better alternative.” A hard back handed slap struck Adam’s cheek. He coughed as he felt his jaw ache and the taste of copper grace his tongue. He glanced at Rita to see anger strewn across her face, eyes filled with hate. Adam spit blood at Rita, “looks like I struck a nerve, huh?”

The next hit knocked Adam on his side, his face planting onto the pavement causing him to wince from the additional layer of pain. Determined not to play the victim, he placed his hands underneath his body and pushed himself off the ground. Slowly rising to his feet, Adam arched his back to stand tall in the face of his enemy as his will to fight back strengthened his resolve, “is that all you are? All bluff?”

Rita’s scorn felt hot as he stared at her boldly. In an instant she lifted Adam off the ground by the throat, “fight all you want, Adam.” Rita scowled, “your servitude is inevitable. If you refuse to serve me willingly,” she paused to emphasize her next statement, “I will make you bow down with force.”

With that final remark, the hand holding the coin with the shape of a flame embedded on it met his forehead. A blinding green light filled the space around them. His forehead burned and his head felt it was splitting. His cry was muffled as the pain interfered with all his senses. For a brief moment the world had faded away. As the light dimmed and the pain became faint, a voice exuded sweetly, “the Green Ranger has been born anew.”

Adam imagined he heard a familiar angry voice yell from behind him, “Get away from him!” In fact, it was real as Rocky appeared and landed a fierce punch against Rita. She released Adam from her grasp and stumbled back a couple of steps as Rocky caught Adam. They fell backward hitting the concrete with a soft thud. Relief flooded through Adam’s veins.

Glancing at Rita, Adam noticed that she caught herself on her staff. Rita wiped away the blood that dripped from a split lip and chuckled, “Looks like little Rocky has come to the rescue.” Adam felt Rocky tense up at the witch, now adorned in black robes again, at the mention of his name.

“Adam,” Rocky leaned in closer to Adam and stuttered, “Who, who is this?”

Rita smiled, “why, everyone has so many questions for me today.” Her face turned sharp with anger, “The name’s, Rita, and I believe you are trying steal what is rightfully mine.”

Adam pushed himself off Rocky to stand. In turn, his friend assisted his efforts by offering his body as support. At least one of them had appeared to be less affected by this mess. Adam became protective and stepped in front of Rocky and threatening the witch, “Don’t you dare touch him, Rita.”

In an instant Rita appeared before them and held out a hand in front of them, causing them to freeze in place. Adam’s entire body felt immobile as some unforeseeable force kept him in place.

Rocky choked out, “Adam, I, I can’t move.”

“Me neither,” Adam responded. Then, he focused his attention on Rita, “What do you want with us? Haven’t you gotten what you wanted?”

Rita merely smiled as she glided a hand over Rocky’s face, “I sense your power as well.” She scoffed abruptly, “I also detect your… enamor for my Green Ranger. I can’t let you interfere.” She yanked Rocky’s face, scratching at his face as she kept his gaze on her. Leaning forward, Rita whispered in Rocky’s ear, “he is my puppet, and when I am done with him, I will kill him. First, I will have Adam kill his friends, his family; he will burn this city to the ground. Then, I will command him to kill you. When I finally release him, Adam will drown in his guilt and beg for death. I can guarantee I will make it as slow and painful as he will deserve,” Rita had articulated, then gazed both of them. A sadistic smile danced across her features.

Rocky choked out, “I won’t let you.”

This caused Rita to laugh, “Admirable, yet futile.”

Adam felt a power grow inside of him as he began to move against the magical restraints Rita had on him. The overwhelming desire to break Rocky from her hold on him seemed to fuel the hidden strength. For a brief moment, Adam saw fear gloss over Rita’s eyes.

Humor quickly replaced the moment of weakness as she spoke, “Shush child. I did not say you could leave yet,” the force pressed tighter.

Suddenly, all pressure disappeared from his body as Adam and Rocky fell to the ground abruptly. Air must have been forced from Rocky’s lungs as he gasped for breath. Adam looked up to see a ranger clad in red had shoved Rita away from the two of them. Kimberly and a yellow ranger flocked immediately to the red ranger’s side.

“You leave them alone, Rita!” a deep masculine voice shouted from the red warrior as he brandished an ornate sword.

“Looks like I underestimated your strength, Rangers,” Rita glared at them, “Your strength is already returning.”

“Yeah, we already chased off your lackeys! Don’t you think it’s time you did the same!?” Kimberly retorted angrily as her bow appeared in her hands again, an arrow already drawn and aimed at Rita.

“Aw look, the angry little rangers that are left. A mighty band of six rangers used to oppose me. Now, there are only three before me while a fourth has been stripped of his former title,” Rita gestured over to were Tommy laid.

“Tommy!” Kimberly shouted toward him and began to lurch forward when the red ranger placed a firm hand on her.

A deep commanding voice wisely advised, “Kimberly, wait. We can help him later. Adam and Rocky are our priorities right now.”

Kimberly acknowledged the request by resetting her sights on Rita. The yellow ranger spoke up, another female ranger Adam detected, “You aren’t welcome here, Rita. Leave now before we forcefully send you away.” She raised a set of sharp dagger ready to sink them into Rita’s flesh if necessary. Adam had hoped she would.

The following events passed by in a blur: Rita waved her hand, tossing Kimberly through the air as the pink ranger collided into the side of a building. Next, the yellow ranger assaulted Rita. She leapt at the witch and slashed only at air as Rita evaded each onslaught, then followed up by ejecting the daggers from the ranger’s hands. With a swift strike of her staff and a jab to the stomach Rita knocked the yellow ranger out of the fight.

The red ranger was the final warrior standing. He advanced forward and clashed the steel blade against Rita’s rod as she had anticipated the maneuver. It was futile as Rita easily overpowered him and shoved him with such force that he flew across the alley and into a dumpster. The red ranger dropped to the ground and was silent, leaving an indent in the metal.

“Heh heh heh, ha ha ha!” Rita began laughing hysterically, “If that is the best the mighty rangers of Zordon has to offer, then you have no chance of winning this war.”

Adam noticed Kimberly and the other two rangers’ armors vanished, leaving three teenagers broken and beaten. Rita walked toward Rocky and Adam again. Rocky leapt at the approaching figure; however, Rita grabbed his face and casually tossed him to the ground as if swatting a fly. She stopped to tower over Adam, “I will allow you to walk away from this, Adam. Next time we meet, I won’t be so generous,” she warned.

Rita raised a hand to her temple and ordered aloud as a white film covered her eyes, “Goldar, Scorpina, our business here is complete. Rendezvous at the palace.” Looking over at Rocky, she waved and stated, “Tah tah, Rocky. We’ll have lots of fun together soon.” with a final gesture, she winked and then disappeared on the spot as she was consumed in green and black shadows.

Groans echoed all around Adam as sirens blared in the background. He rolled over onto his hands and knees, crawling over to Rocky. His best friend had propped himself already and leaned back on his palms. Exhaustion covered his face.

“Thank God you are ok, Adam,” Rocky breathed haphazardly.

Rocky reached out to touch Adam, but instead Adam clumsily pulled Rocky into a tight embrace. The day caught up to both of them as they gripped each other tightly. The warmth and scent of Rocky flooded Adam’s senses as he relaxed into his arms. Tears stung Adam’s eyes as he heard Rocky mirror the response with staggered breaths. Both of them vulnerable and relieved, they held each other allowing them to find solace in the moment. For the first time in his life, Adam realized his own mortality. 

So many thoughts raced through Adam’s mind, “I was so scared Rocky. Throughout all of this, I was just fighting to stay strong and protect everyone, but I thought each moment was my last. I was afraid of dying.”

Rocky pulled away and Adam saw bleary eyes, “I was so afraid I was going to lose you. I can’t…” Rocky stared intently at Adam and slowly leaned in. His forehead rested against Adam’s and he felt Rocky’s breath hit his lips. His breath felt amazing, as it made him appreciate the feeling of being alive.

Adam found himself dazed at the close contact: “Rocky, what are you…” he began before Rocky abruptly pulled away.

Rocky stumbled on his words, and wiped at his eyes, “look, uh, we should get back. Make sure Aisha is ok.”

As Rocky began to get up, Adam pulled at Rocky’s sleeve, firmly stating, “Rocky, wait.” However, it threw Rocky off balance as he fell on top of Adam and pushed him onto his back. Adam bumped his head against the pavement. The weight pressed against his side made Adam wince as he clasped his body while a sharp pain shot up the side of his torso.

Rocky’s eyes shot open, “Shit! I’m sorry Adam. You ok?” Rocky hovered directly above Adam as he was splayed beneath his best friend. A palm was planted beside Adam’s head and Rocky was examining the injured spot.

Rocky looked up at Adam and asked, “May I?” Adam nodded and gritted his teeth as he hiked up his shirt. A gasp echoed from Rocky as a trembling hand lightly grazed against the tender flesh. Rocky commented, “Man that looks bad. It’s all bruised up.”

“Yeah it’s from the impact of that Putty earlier,” Adam responded. He rotated his right shoulder and pain shot through the joint as well as he remember Rita had clawed into him. Tears stung his eyes again as he jerked back into place.

“What the hell happened there!?” Rocky tenderly moved the cloth away from the wound, “We need to get you to a medic. Blood is soaked in your shirt all around the wound.” He paused before continuing again, “Was it that bitch? Next time I see her I’m… What?”

Adam interrupted his tirade unintentionally as he began chuckling at Rocky’s overbearing concern. “it’s nothing. I appreciate the concern, mom.”

Rocky furrowed his brows and reprimanded, “hell, if you want to let yourself suffer that’s fine, but I’m not gonna let that happen. So you better get your ass up!”

Adam could not suppress another laugh, “You are cute when you get protective. Though you really start acting like your mother.”

“Oh, uh, I uh,” Rocky’s cheeks flustered, turning a bright shade of pink that contrasting with is tan skin. Realizing how the two of them were positioned, Rocky’s eyes widened and he shot up from Adam. “We, uh, should go.”

Rocky turned around and combed his hand through his wavy brown hair. Adam did not realize he was staring so intently at Rocky, not really understanding why Rocky appeared uncomfortable. _It’s not like Rocky… No he doesn’t think that about me? Does he? Was the guy he was mentioning earlier…_

Realization dawned on Adam. He was not sure how to process that information. He never thought of Rocky like that. Did he? Figuring he was just emotional and exhausted from the day, he decided to readdress the question later.

Adam pulled himself from his thoughts when someone crouched down beside him, a firm hand grasped his good shoulder, “How are you feeling?” He looked over at the person that was beneath the red ranger suit. He was startled but forced himself to respond, nodding and politely thanking him, “yeah, I’ll be fine. Thank you.”

Rocky turned around hearing the two speak, “Hey, Jason, so who was that Rita exactly? What did she mean by calling Adam her, ‘Green Ranger’?”

“She what?” Jason asked, a disgruntled expression on his face.

Adam heard Kimberly yell, “Jason get your butt over here! It's Tommy!” Looking over, he saw Kimberly leaning over another teenager dressed in a green shirt and khaki pants.

“Hold on a moment, guys,” Jason clasped Adam’s shoulder again and headed toward to his allies.

Adam watched the Asian ranger gracefully approach him and knelt down. “I’m glad you are safe,” the woman sympathized. Tucking a piece of her beautiful black hair behind an ear, she spoke again, “I’m Trini. You must be Adam?”

Adam responded politely, “Yes, pleased to meet you.” He gazed up at Rocky and asked him, “I imagine you already met the other rangers, Rock?”

Rocky still appeared nervous, but the conversation made him a little more relaxed, “Yeah, the guy of the group is Jason. You met Kimberly and Trini. I don’t know who that guy is by Kim and Jason.”

“That would be Tommy,” the comment contained conflicted emotions in the statement.

 Rocky idly wished aloud what he imagined all of them were thinking, plainly, “I keep hoping I will wake up any time and this will all be a bad dream.”

Trini sighed sadly, “I’m afraid not. We all wish the same thing sometimes, but you just have to deal and adjust to it. I’m sure this will change the town. It definitely hurt Angel Grove.”

Rocky shot a look at Trini, “you guys are from Angel Grove!? How come we have never heard of you guys or any of this? You guys aren’t that far from us.”

“What do you mean you haven’t heard of us?” Trini was just as surprised to hear their response. Kimberly did not state anything when she was asked earlier.

Before they could discuss the matter further, Jason returned, “Trini, Tommy is going to be ok. Kimberly teleported him back to the command center already.”

Trini acknowledged Jason and stood up.  She glanced at Rocky then at Adam, “I’m glad you two are safe now. I wish it was under better circumstances, but I am glad that we met. Take care, guys.” Turning to Jason, she stated, “I’ll go ahead and join Kim back at the command center. I’ll see you in a minute.” With a flash of yellow light, Trini was gone.

Jason met Rocky’s eyes, “Here take this.” He offered what looked like a watch, color-coded black. Rocky took the object curiously. Adam noticed there was an identical watch on Jason’s wrist; only red stripes lined the wristband.

“What is it?” Rocky asked absently.

“It’s a communicator. You can talk to us: Kimberly, Trini, and myself, with it,” Jason rotated the communicator to reveal a button attached to the side of the device. “We want to ask you two join our team, to join the Power Rangers. That was the reason we were looking for Adam. I’m sure you have more questions and we will gladly answer them. Just push this button whenever you guys are ready.”

Adam’s wasn’t sure if it was the fatigue or the overload of information, but he felt light headed. That did not stop his heart from skipping a beat at the offer, “Us, become Power Rangers?”

Jason repositioned his weight and focused his attention on both of them, “Yes. Zordon is the one that recruited us. He will be able to answer your questions more thoroughly then I could. In the meantime, I need to report what happened to Zordon.”

“Wait, where are you going? What happens when I push the button?” Rocky held the communicator up

“It will teleport you to the command center,” Jason motioned at the two of them, “just make sure to huddle against each other when you do. It won’t teleport both of you otherwise.” He raised the communicator in front of him and grabbed it with is right hand. “Just speak into the communicator if you need to call us for help.” With that, Jason clicked the button and he flashed in a red light leaving Rocky and Adam alone.

“Wow,” Rocky commented. He looked down at Adam, “You ok? You look pale?”

Adam responded quietly, “yeah I’ll be fine. I just need rest.” He knew he felt worse than he was willing to admit. Yet, his body would not let him hide it as he stumbled when he stood himself upright, feeling really dizzy.

Rocky glanced back at Adam’s shoulder wound, “Shit, I need to get you to an ambulance, now. You are losing more blood,” Rocky propped Adam against him by wrapping an arm around his waist and placing Adam’s arm around his neck.

“Rocky?”

“Yeah, Adam?”

“Thank you.”

“Any time, buddy. Let’s get out of here.”

“Best suggestion I heard all day.”

Adam hobbled off with Rocky close to his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment and ask me anything. I will gladly respond to you!


	9. Adam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was not what I imagined it would turn out to be. I do focus on Adam's development. Enjoy!

Adam sat on edge of his bed reflecting on the events over the weekend. He had so many questions and the last thing anyone was willing to do was readdress them. After the attack on Friday, that evening the city went into a mass frenzy. The police shut down local business and evacuated residential areas within a two block radius, explaining that the area could be contaminated or explosives may be primed to explode. All news media was quickly censored within twenty-four hours. Instead of alien invasions or foreign attacks, the threat of terrorism pervaded. All school districts closed all campuses early and advised families to remain at home or avoid traveling to the afflicted areas of Stone Canyon. Everyone wanted to forget about it yet Adam and his friends were the only ones that had any idea of the truth behind the attack. The Attack on Stone Canyon: the city’s most devastating event in history and no one was willing to get involved. It was strange that no one had heard of anything like this coming from Angel Grove since Jason and the others were from there. There were still no reports or involvement from that city. It was eerie.

In the meantime, Adam was restricted to staying at home by his parents. Knowing them, he would be on lockdown for the better part of the winter break. He let out a sigh, frustrated that he was confined to the small space of a house. It was Monday morning and the sun was peering through the window as natural light flooded the room. Adam had already performed his morning routine: stretching which was followed by rehearsing Tai-Chi forms, breakfast, showering and ending with meditation. Adam forced himself to awake early every day; otherwise, he would be prone to sleeping in all morning. It still took him thirty minutes to actually get out of bed. However, once he was actually awake, Adam committed himself to his personal regimen.

During the week Adam went to the dojo with Rocky Monday through Thursday in the evenings after school. Any extra time was usually spent hanging out or studying for the next exam with Aisha and/or Rocky. On the weekend, Adam tended to get out and enjoy the park by himself or focus on his studies.

He was disciplined but that often alienated him from others. Rocky and Aisha usually forced Adam into coming along their many adventures. Rocky usually enticed him to go out to practice martial arts which usually developed into a clever scheme to lure Adam into some other activity. On the other hand, Aisha could march in and state that she was whisking Adam away for a period of time. It always surprised him. His mother was fond of both Rocky and Aisha, yet he was always keeping one eye on Rocky but was lenient with Aisha. Adam would probably never know why.

It never bothered Adam, and he actually appreciated it. He usually was too distracted with various studies to notice the passing of time. Rocky always told him to lighten up. However, over the years his mother’s strict habits became instilled in him. Rocky could never argue whenever he struggled with school and needed Adam’s assistance.

Adam broke from his thoughts to examine his bedroom. There was minimal decoration:  a simple desk for his studies, the bed, a shelf for books and his pictures, and an entertainment system for his television and radio. The most colorful item was large plant he placed in a corner by his window. The only decorations mounted on his walls were his martial arts trophies, such as: belts and medals awarded from tournaments. The room itself was colored in tones of grey, dark grey walls with a light smoky grey carpet. It was simple yet serene. Aisha and Rocky always found themselves at ease in here.

Bored due to being cooped up, Adam decided to try to coerce his parents in allowing him to visit Rocky. Maybe if he could convince Rocky’s parents to pick him up, that would ease their concerns. Adam, in conjunction with Rocky and Aisha, already attempted to convince each other’s’ parents that they wanted to leave on a camping trip outside of the city over the weekend. Not only were their parents paranoid about their safety since they were caught directly in the feud, they did not want to risk their children from being separated from their families.  The city was under lockdown to prevent any harm to the citizens. Stone Canyon declared a state of emergency on Saturday to protect and prevent any devastation from potential future attacks.

Aside from the adjustments implemented on the north side of town, major highways were blocked from people entering the city. Communications were restricted from outside of the city and only media generated from the United States capital was permitted. It only issued growing concerns of terrorism. All news reports continued to appropriate stories regarding aliens from space to coining the terminology as illegal aliens or foreign country attacks. Police officials and other security forces were designated to enforce these precautions such as requiring citizens to remain at home for the remainder of the weekend. Hopefully, there was some update to the liberties the town could be afforded now.

Adam opened his bedroom door, walking down the hall into the living room. The house was small. On one end was Adam’s bedroom and bathroom. The living room and kitchen were in the middle of the house, with his parents’ bedroom on the opposite end. There was a garden outside in the backyard and a small patio that his family would spend time together, usually drinking tea and discussing various topics or challenging their minds with board games. It was quaint and his parents made a modest living, but they never went without the necessities and more.

His father was sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper and his mother could be seen through the screen door to the patio tending to the garden. It was a little chilly as the temperature finally decided to drop outside. Sitting beside his father at the table Adam asked for articles he was done with. His father insisted on his son keeping up with the news, but always to keep an open mind and never take anything for granted. Anything you saw with your own eyes was the truth. Words were simply created by men, and men were fallible.

The date read: Monday, December 12, 1994 on the top of the page with the main article reading as follows:

_TERRORISTS INVADE STONE CANYON?  On Friday, December 9, 1994 at approximately 4:30pm, an explosion erupted, located in the business district at Central Plaza. Within the wreckage of this tragic event, unknown assailants began attacking the city: destroying businesses, damaging personal property, and assaulting Stone Canyon’s citizens. Police attempted to intervene only to be faced with heavy resistance. Paramedics and the Fire Department focused their efforts on withdrawing citizens to safety under duress of this unknown menace. Miraculously, the foreign entities that raided the city disappeared within the hour of the attack, leaving no trace among the wreckage. Currently there are several injured with 20 reported critical with 40 confirmed dead and counting. Stone Canyon, an estimated population of 200,000 people, is still currently under a State of Emergency until further notice. Red Cross will be distributing provisions for citizens within the next 24 hours and citizens are instructed to…_

Adam placed the newspaper down to look at his father. He was a man in his early fifties.  A tuft of hair was kept combed to keep the curls from getting out of place, something Adam always liked about the hair he inherited. His physical features were broader; Adam shared his softer tones with his mother. A pair of almond shaped eyes peered over the corner of the paper, “what’s troubling you son?” His father always vaguely knew what bothered Adam, but he preferred his son to vocalize his thoughts. It was a way to break Adam’s shyness and to give him individuality. The shyness part never went away.

“The reports are disturbing. Anyone that was there knows it was not just some terrorist attack. Why isn’t anyone speaking up about it?” Adam gazed at his father hoping for insight into the situation.

His father scrunched his brows inward, questioningly. Then, he relaxed his features and stated confidently, “people are afraid and they need something they can grasp. If there is existence of some foreign species, especially from space, then no one, not even the government, is going to want that knowledge to circulate. It is easier to control people when they have a concept they are familiar with and can understand.”

Adam forced out a sigh, “and yeah that’s just stupid.” He fidgeted in his spot irritated that there was no new development. All he wanted was to see his friends, to see Rocky. “I need to get out of the house. I’m getting stir crazy and need to get outside for a while.” Adam did not bother to try to be ginger as his father was always blunt with him.

His father shifted in his seat and set the newspaper down, “you know your mother and I don’t want you to risk your safety. We trust you but your mother and I are scared. When we received a call from the hospital that you had passed out from blood loss we..” His father stopped and looked at his son in a way he could not understand.

Adam knew they were always a little overprotective due to him being an only child because of his mother’s accident. “I know, father. I would at least like to see my friends though.”

“Why don’t you invite Rocky over?” his father asked.

“That’s kind of hard when his family is giving him the same treatment,” Adam made sure to keep the irritation from his voice. His family traditions were built on respect. Just because his father was more liberal with Adam, that did not approve improper behavior.

His father appeared to consider the situation before speaking again, “if you can convince your mother, I will take you over to Carlos and Maria’s. That is if they will have you.”

Feeling a little relieved, Adam replied, “That’s not the issue dad. It’s mom.” That got a chuckle from his father and a muttered ‘ _I know, I know_.’

Adam left his chair, pushing it in, and walked over toward the patio. He pushed back the screen door and stepped outside, slipping on shoes set on a rack outside the door. Moving over to the garden Adam saw his mother preparing the garden for the colder weather. He always enjoyed watching his mom work so patiently and precisely. It was soothing.

He knelt down beside her and placed his hand on his lap, not wanting to be rude and interrupt her without being addressed. His mother stopped after tending to some of the roots and turned to face her son, “how is your shoulder feeling today, Adam?” There was concern etched across her face.

“It has been feeling a lot better. The Tai-Chi helps with blood circulation and allows me to stretch it without overdoing it,” Adam stated hoping that would reassure her. He was a terrible liar and there was no point when his mother would be able to see through him anyway.

“I’m glad,” she gave a gentle smile. “Rocky called earlier. I almost think he has been more worried about you than your father and I combined.”

That forced a laugh from Adam, “yeah, I tend to think that sometimes too.” _But it’s more than that now._

His mother pulled him from his thoughts, seemingly reading them, “you know, I have my suspicions about Rocky.”

Adam tensed up, uncertain where this conversation may go, “what do you mean, mother?”

“He seems to be more… attentive recently,” she paused. “Not that I think there is anything inherently wrong with that. However, I don’t think that would be appropriate if anything were to come of it.”

He read in between the lines but was unsure how to approach it, “what are you suggesting? Rocky has always been an outgoing person. His family is very affectionate. It’s just their culture.” He began to feel uncomfortable as dread filled his stomach.

“Adam, you are very bright but when it comes to perceiving certain types of affection, more particularly romantic types, you do not appear to notice. Aisha used to be that way about you, in which I had hoped. However,” she turned to look at Adam and smiled, “there is always time.”

Adam felt his face heat up with embarrassment, “Mom, Aisha doesn’t think that.”

“Uh huh,” his mom went back to tending to the garden. “My point exactly.”

That comment annoyed him and he let the emotion escape, “I’m not dumb mom. I know Aisha better than you, I would think.”

“Adam,” a quick and stern retort from his mother caused Adam to sit up in attention as shame started to edge its way in.

“I’m sorry, mother.” Adam gave a slight bow in apology. “I just meant that…”

“I know what you meant, Adam. It’s ok,” his mom continued her maintenance on the garden.

Adam fidgeted wanting to get a clear answer about Rocky from his mother. The only way would be to admit aloud what Adam came to believe. It had been gnawing at him for the past couple of days and he had wanted to talk to Rocky about it. He never felt comfortable with discussing something so personal via phone. He took a breath and then looked at his mother, “you believe Rocky likes me? That he is gay?”

His mother paused; Adam assumed she did not expect such a direct response, “yes. I do.”

“Is that a problem?” Adam allowed his voice to rise. Rocky was too good hearted to be slandered if that was his mother’s intent.

“Tone again, Adam.” Adam ignored that comment. His mother spoke again, “I do not have a problem with whatever his preference may be. That is his life and his decision. However, I do not want him to influence you and force you into something that is not deemed appropriate.”

“What? You really think he would force to do something against my will. That’s not Rocky at all.” Anger elicited from Adam’s voice but he was able to bite it back enough to prevent him from acting foolish.

His response garnered a disapproving stare from his mother. Any other situation, it would have disturbed Adam. She began, “I do not want you to be associated with that behavior because that is not what is best for you. It is too easy for young people to be influenced.”

“That is so hypocritical,” Adam shoved a finger in his mother’s direction, shock visible on her face. “Rocky has been nothing but supportive and a good friend to me all of these years. He is practically another son to you. And you don’t know what is good for me anyway.”

She stood up, her posture rigid and her face angry, “Adam watch how you speak to me. Until you can be respectful this conversation is over. In the meantime, go to your room.”

Adam imitated her, shaking nervously in front of her, but he had to stand up to her, for Rocky’s sake. His honor instilled in him would not allow it any other way. “Are you going to forbid me from seeing Rocky now?”

“I never said that,” his mother retorted.

“No, but that is what you are implying.” The moment drove Adam to keep talking, “how dare you disgrace him like that. He has always been respectful to this family. So what if he is gay. I know he is; he told me. But that isn’t any of your business. Even if he did I would think you would at least know he would be good to me.”

“Stop talking nonsense,” she turned and began walking away while forcing herself to maintain dignity.

“No, mother, you need to listen to me instead of just cramming your ideas down my throat,” he reached out and grabbed his mother’s arm.

“Let go of me, Adam,” she reprimanded. Her control was being to falter as she responded with a wavering voice, “You are clearly not feeling well still and need more rest as you are entertaining this idea of an alternate lifestyle.”

“I never said I was with Rocky or anything! I am merely trying to defend him and it makes no sense why you are being this way,” Adam kept pushing the issue. His mom was avoiding saying something and he could not figure out what it was. She forcefully pulled her arm away from Adam and walked toward the house. Adam could only think of one other response that would demand a confrontation about the issue, “I’m bi, mother!”

That confession made her stand still. She made no notion to turn around.  Adam continued, “I like guys, I like girls. Is that going to be a problem with you!? What is really bothering you?” He stepped closer to her. She was crying softly. “Mom?” Adam became quiet as concern and guilt coiled in the pit of his stomach.

His mother turned around, and a vulnerability he never saw before in her revealed itself to him, “I want you to be able to have kids, Adam.”

“Yeah, well, maybe I don’t want kids,” a sharp sting erupted from his left cheek as his mother slapped him. Shame filled him as he felt responsible for causing his mother this pain. Yet, he could not shake the anger at her being unreasonable toward Rocky.

“You don’t know what you want until it’s taken away from you,” her words were soft and broken. Tears welled up in her eyes again. She moved over to the patio and sat in one of the chairs tucked in the corner of the porch faced toward the garden. Becoming louder she stated, “I don’t want you seeing Rocky until we talk more about this. I don’t think you know what you are thinking which is disappointing to see how you are too bright for this.”

Adam could not face his mother as tears begged to fight their way out. He felt humiliated. He was angry. So many conflicting feelings of shame and pride circled his heart. It did not take much to realize his mother was upset about her inability to have any more children. Adam was their ‘gift’ as a result of the accident. That did not make it fair to impart her grief onto Adam. Who knows how she really felt about him? Now that the adrenaline was beginning to fade, Adam was scared what could happen. He had confessed his sexual identity and he was unable to capture those words. All he could think was that he needed his best friend right now. Rocky would know what to say in this situation.

“I’m leaving,” Adam did not need to explain what he meant. He began toward the house.

“You are not going anywhere Adam,” she commanded, her voice rising but still shaky.

“Watch me,” he shot through the house. Barreling into his bedroom, Adam retrieved a duffle bag and shoved his Gi and some clothes into it. Then, he stopped by the bathroom to grab some supplies and headed to the front door.

His father was there, “Adam.” Sadness clouded his features.

“I’m going to Rocky’s. I’ll let you know when I get there.”

“Son, wait let’s…”

“No,” Adam stopped to collect himself. He gave his father a slight bow in apology, “I’m sorry, father. I need some space.”

“Just be careful, son. Come here,” his father opened his arms and Adam slinked over giving his father a hug.  “I know your mother is strict with you, but she’ll come around. She isn’t angry at you and doesn’t mean to be unreasonable.”

Adam refused to accept that, “it doesn’t excuse her disrespect. She raised me to be respectful to everyone and to defend those that deserve respect. I’ll call when I get there dad.”

“Alright, son. Here take the car at least,” his father handed him the keys.

Shaking his head Adam stated, “I’ll be alright. I would rather walk. I need the exercise. It’ll probably be easier for me to avoid any patrols anyway.” With that Adam stepped outside and closed the door behind him. Pulling on a black jacket to cover the tank top he was wearing, Adam trekked off toward the DeSantos’ residence.

\------

Adam walked up to the residence and stared at the doorbell for a second. He and Rocky would need to talk. For the moment, all he wanted was to be locked up in Rocky’s room and talk about senseless stuff or watch movies. Every time Adam was upset or worried, Rocky was the one that was usually able to reach in and say the right words to make him feel better. Maybe it was just Rocky. Maybe it was something more. Adam was unsure and just felt confused and emotional. He felt guilty about how he left his mother. It broke several codes of conduct he was accustomed to. Rocky was more important though. _Why? It’s not like I feel anything ‘romantic’ for him. He is my best friend,_ Adam thought.

Finally ringing the doorbell, Adam waited for a few minutes before the door opened. Rocky had answered the door and was frozen in place, surprised to see him.

“Hey, can I come in?” Adam asked.

“Uh, yes, of course. Come in.” Rocky stepped aside as Adam walked in, the door closing behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will have a new development between Rocky and Adam. =)


	10. Rocky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It happened; you're welcome. ;)

“So how did you manage to crawl out of your parents’ place?” Rocky was baffled by Adam’s appearance when he had opened the door and invited his friend inside. “I doubt they just let you walk out.”

“That’s actually what I did,” Adam replied.

“Oh,” that was all Rocky could respond with. _Something serious must have happened if Adam really just walked out. Especially under current circumstances,_ Rocky thought.

A voice came from further inside the house, “Mijo! Who was at the door?”

“It was Adam, mom! We are gonna head upstairs!” Rocky shouted toward the living room.

A couple seconds later, the patter of footsteps could be heard as a stout woman in a simple blouse and kahki pants just a couple inches shorter than Adam and himself appeared. She immediately walked up to Adam and gave him a tight hug. Rocky heard the ‘oof’ forced from Adam’s lungs as his mother began to speak concernedly, “Adamsito, how are you, mijo? We were so worried,” she paused briefly before continuing, “is Min or Jong here?”

Adam shook his head, “no ma’am. I came over here by myself.”

Rocky’s mother, Maria, gave Adam an incredulous look. She moved around him to peer outside the front window, then turned toward Adam and uttered rapidly, “is everything ok? What happened? How did you get out of your house? I know your mother would never allow it.” Maria looked at Rocky and smacked his arm, “what did you do? You are going to get Adam into trouble, mijo. I better call Min.”

As Rocky’s mother began to head toward their house phone near the living room, Adam quickly commented, “No, Mrs. DeSantos, I told my father I was going to come over. My mother… she knows as well.”

 _That’s odd_. Rocky scrunched his eyebrows as he thought what could have happened, _Did Adam get in a fight with his parents? Nah, Adam would never do that_. Rocky saw Adam’s unease and he moved forward, gently placing an arm around Adam’s shoulders, aware of his injury, and patted his friend’s chest with his free hand, “c’mon, mama, leave Adam be. We haven’t gotten to see each other since,” Rocky paused, choosing his words carefully as the attack was still a sensitive topic to his parents, “Look. We will be up in my room so we can hang out a bit before Ms. Park decides to come and lock Adam away for all eternity.”

Adam jabbed Rocky in the ribs, garnering a chuckle from the two of them. Rocky’s mother was not amused however. “You know you are always welcome here Adam as you are a part of this family, but I will still give Min a call and let them know you are here.” Her tone, Rocky had learned over the years, meant there was no further discussion to be had.

Adam gave a slight bow and turned around to head upstairs. Rocky grinned and cheered at his mom, “Thanks, mom!” Rocky chased after Adam.

The stairs leading to the floor above were to the right of the small foyer just down a short hallway. Past the stairs there was a den accompanied by one of the patios. Directly to the left of the entry way led to a door to the kitchen while the living room was an open space in front. In the back of the house were Rocky’s parents’ bedroom, a game room, and another patio leading to the backyard and shed.

The upstairs section housed three bedrooms for the four DeSantos children: his bedroom, his sister’s of about eleven years, and the two young boys, ages of three and five, shared a third. Rocky’s was tucked on the right side at the end of the hall.  It was a little tight sometimes but everyone had their space. The DeSantos family spent a lot of time together in general anyway. Ironically, the layout was pretty similar to Adam’s only without a second floor.

At least the location of his bedroom allowed him to retain some measure of privacy. It was hard when his siblings had such admiration for the eldest DeSantos kid and always wanted to hang around him. They loved Adam and Aisha too, so when either one of them were around, it was even harder to get alone time unless they used the studying excuse. His mother made it happen. Luckily, they were out in the back yard when Adam rang.

After trotting up the steps and walking into his room, Rocky saw Adam sitting on his bed, elbows propped on his knees and his face buried in his hands. The image broke Rocky’s heart. He wanted to help and Rocky would make damn sure that Adam would lose his troubles. It was funny to him as all he could think about the past few days was being with Adam. Now however, the only thing that Rocky wanted was to fix what hurt his best friend. _I can’t keep lying to myself. He isn’t just a friend to me anymore_. That thought made Rocky exhale a deep sigh. Adam did not appear to notice.

Rocky shut the door behind him and faced his bedroom. It was small but he was able to fit everything he needed in here. It had blue walls paired with an off shade of shaggy beige carpet. On the opposite wall of the door was his full sized bed tucked into the corner, a lone window at the foot of the bed. The wall left of the door had his desk but it was more of a storage area unlike Adam’s immaculate room. The closet shared the wall with his bedroom door while the rest was adorned with shelves displaying his own trophies from various martial art competitions, a radio, and a collection of CDs he kept beside his books and valuables. Rocky preferred not to keep a television in his room as he preferred his space to be quiet and contain few distractions. The music from the radio and CD player helped set that separation.

Deciding that some music would be good to help relax, Rocky put in one of his Indie music CDs and then walked over to the bed sitting down beside his best friend. Adam wiped his face and then looked at Rocky, smiling faintly, “tell me none of this has happened, that we were rebellious and decided to take some really strong acid.”

Rocky laughed at the absurdity of the comment. He responded, “What’s bothering you? Is it just the attack?” He remembered the dreams Adam told him about, “you haven’t had any more dreams have you?”

Adam shook his head, “I wish it something that simple, now.” He began twiddling his thumbs together.

“Did something happen with your parents?”

That jarred a response from Adam as he became somber and looked at his feet. “Yeah, actually. But there’s more to it.”

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Rocky kept his response simple to allow Adam freedom to approach the subject.

Adam shifted beside him on the bed and positioned himself to face Rocky as he followed suit. Seriousness governed Adam’s features yet a hint of curiosity gleamed in his eyes, “Rocky, before the Putties attacked, when you told me you were gay, you were trying to tell me about this guy you liked.”

Rocky’s face heated.

Continuing, Adam spoke, “I started thinking about who it could be: in that moment, during bits of the attack, while I was locked up in my room. It has made me question my feelings.”

 _Where is he going with this?_ Panic ebbed slowly at the back of Rocky’s mind, “feelings about what Adam?” His voice was beginning to falter.

“I linked it to all these possibilities but there is not a single guy I can think of that you would be interested in, except…” Adam became unusually animated as he traveled onto the next topic, “mother, she figured you were gay. And she had the nerve, she had the nerve to…

Adam stood up abruptly, visibly angry, “she went on about how she had no problem with you being gay. But she had the nerve to tell me that you would be this bad influence on me, that somehow you would, _force me,_ into doing something against my will.

Rocky stared as Adam scoffed. He had never seen his friend lose control of his emotions so willingly before, “she told me I couldn’t be around you anymore. I yelled at her. I told her ‘so what Rocky is gay!’ I shouted out that I was bi!”

He was stunned that Adam revealed Rocky’s sexual identity to his mother. Though he was not sure if he felt angry? Scared? Confused? That was Rocky’s secret to share, yet Adam had so freely admitted it. However, the admission of Adam’s bisexuality made things harder to understand. Strangely, it felt liberating. Regardless, Rocky could not help to stare up at Adam from the bed and ask irritatingly, “what do you mean you told her, Adam?”

His response did not appear to reach Adam as his friend became more frustrated. Adam’s attention was not focused toward anything in particular, “I told her so what, so what if I don’t want kids. And she, she…” Adam dropped his arms by his side as he became still, though Rocky heard a faint sound echo.

Rocky rose from the bed and stepped toward Adam as Adam began to speak again, “My mom slapped me.” Hurt laced his words.

“Hey,” Rocky turned Adam to face him. The sight made Rock’s breath hitch. Adam refused to look at Rocky, declining to show any weakness, yet the tears rolled down his cheeks as a mixture of anger and pain were etched onto him. “Why the hell would your mom hit you?”

Adam shook his head, “The accident still affects her. She is still upset that she can’t have any more kids and wants to live vicariously through her only son.” Adam shook his head, “But you know what? It’s not even really about her disrespect. That isn’t why I’m so upset.” He gazed into Rocky’s eyes. “I am angry that she dared to slander your name. You are too good of a person and I refuse to let anyone shit about you.”

Rocky’s knees felt weak. He had no words for Adam as he could only listen. The one thing that Rocky wanted to do the most, he could not. Adam seemed to will his way through the vulnerability and started again as he gripped Rocky’s shirt tightly, “I don’t know what I am feeling. I don’t get it, but it’s because of you. You are making me lose control of myself yet you are the only thing that makes sense.”

“Adam, I,” Rocky felt Adam’s hot breath brush over his lips. He needed to get away from Adam before…

“Rocky, look at me,” Adam stared intensely into Rocky’s eyes. He stated plainly, “I’m the guy you like.”

Rocky pulled Adam into him and pressed his lips against Adam’s. He shoved his tongue between Adam’s lips, tasting how sweet Adam was. Adam tensed up at the kiss, but as Rocky wrapped his arms tighter around the body before him, he felt Adam give in as he began to shove his lips back in response. Rocky felt Adam’s hands roam along his back that sent shivers up his spine and caused him to gasp into Adam’s mouth. Adam became braver as Rocky felt him invade his mouth. Their tongues coiled as Rocky trailed his hands through Adam’s hair, his soft curls electrifying to the touch.

Adam held Rocky against him by gripping the base of Rocky’s back with one hand. He pressed the other on Rocky’s stomach and traveled up his chest. Rocky’s breath hitched as the warmth spiraled through him. His carnal side wanted to taste more of Adam; Rocky wanted to explore what he craved for so long. Rocky spun their bodies around and shuffled toward the bed while they exchanged kisses. Adam nibbled at Rocky’s lower lip which sent a spark straight to his cock. Rocky shoved Adam backward as he fell onto the bed. Adam looked up at Rocky with have lidded eyes, looking high from the contact, lips swollen and face flushed. _Fuck he is beautiful,_ Rocky lusted after Adam.

Rocky knelt over Adam on the bed as he recaptured those tender lips. Adam automatically scooted toward the front of the bed as Rocky crawled up on top of him. Forcing Adam down with his mouth Rocky became more aggressive as he pressed his body against Adam’s. Adam didn’t surrender as he responded as fervently, melding his lips constantly alongside Rocky’s and taking quick breaths in between each release. Rocky felt heat rise within his chest; he pushed further.

With one arm propped beside Adam’s head he broke away from Adam to suckle against his neck, directly underneath his earlobe. The moan elicited from Adam shot through Rocky as pride and hunger fueled his actions. Rocky softly trailed the tip of his tongue down the soft skin exposed along Adam’s neck, the light taste of salt rewarding his adventure. He stopped at the base to suck at the flesh again. Adam writhed beneath him as he twisted his body into Rocky’s, wrapping a leg around his hips and pulling him down closer.

The indent in Adam’s pants brushed against Rocky’s causing him to roar in Adam’s ear, “Fuck!”

Immediately, Adam took charge and flipped Rocky onto his back as he straddled Rocky’s hips. Rocky’s heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest. Adam’s sweatpants allowed Rocky to feel more of the cleft in his cheeks as he ground against Rocky when he suddenly pinned Rocky’s arms above him. The man above leaned down to stop mere inches away from Rocky. Desire echoed in Adam’s eyes as he glazed over Rocky. Adam flicked his tongue against his lips, wetting them, before claiming Rocky. After having surrendered completely to Adam, Rocky was freed as Adam planted his hands beside Rocky. Taking the opportunity at the sight above him, his cock tight in his shorts, he shoved his hands beneath Adam’s tank top and felt smooth skin graze his own rough hands. Adam lifted his head to gasp for air and biting his lower lip at the contact. Rocky trailed his hands down feeling a light tuft of hair guiding him to his goal. Rocky grabbed at Adam through his pants. Though the response was unexpected as Adam yelped and jumped up, falling off the bed. A loud thud vibrated through the house.

A couple seconds later a stern voice boomed in response, “Mijo!!”

The shock ebbed away from Rocky’s face as he looked at Adam apologetically and leaped off the bed to bolt to the door. He yanked it open and shouted, “Sorry, Mom!” Then, he promptly shut it.

Rocky turned to see Adam looking back at him. The shock on his face recoiled into an intense blush as he averted his eyes away. The back of his neck began to glow red as well. This sparked a chuckle from Rocky, “Sorry, I guess I got a little carried away.”

He scratched his head and walked in front of Adam and offered a hand out in response. Looking up, Adam accepted it and lifted himself up with Rocky. Tripping slightly, he stumbled into Rocky’s arms. Rocky caught him and held him as one arm was wrapped around his back and a hand resting against Adam’s hip. Adam’s hands were pressed in between their bodies as he rested one against Rocky’s chest. Rocky’s breath was beginning to skip again at the unfamiliar touch, but it was all welcomed.

“Hey,” Rocky smiled in response.

“Hey,” Adam looked away but a grin trickled across his flustered face. His shyness was nothing short of adorable.

Rocky lost track of time holding Adam but decided to let him go. They needed to discuss what happened. Before Rocky could ask, Adam beat him to the punch, “so, uh, that was unexpected.” Adam still shied away.

Placing a finger beneath Adam’s chin, Rocky tilted Adam’s face up so they were looking into each other’s eyes. “Did I go too far? Though, I think you seemed to enjoy having a little Latin heat.”

That yielded a typical response as Adam laughed and shoved Rocky away, “yeah, yeah, don’t let your ego get too big.”

“Well,” Rocky looked down at his crotch as he was still erect, “I think that is more your fault.” He glanced back up and grinned proudly. “Besides I think your ‘ego’ was competing with mine.”

The salty expression was worth the crude comment, but the laughter could not be kept out of Adam’s voice, “Shut up, Rock.” Adam composed himself in that serious ‘we need to talk’ manner, “we need to talk.”

Rocky almost pushed for another joke but held his tongue. He did not want to allow Adam to slip from his hands. Responding calmly, he stated, “I agree, Adam. So I think I made it pretty clear how I feel about you. What do you feel now?”

Adam was quiet for a moment as fear poked the back of Rocky’s mind, _Shit! Is he going to freak out? Please don’t tease me like that Adam. Please, please, please._

The response was exactly what Rocky had hoped for, “I liked it.” But then Rocky’s hopes deflated as Adam said, “But I don’t know if this is what I want.”

“What do you mean? What are you feeling? What are you thinking?” Rocky sounded almost desperate as he peppered Adam with questions, “I didn’t mean to freak you out Adam. I couldn’t control myself any longer around you.”

Adam perked his head up, “I didn’t mean it to sound like that, Rocky. What I mean is I don’t know what I want. No, wait.”

Rocky reacted on instinct and walked up to Adam and placed his hands on his biceps, “Hey, take a breath. Give yourself a chance to think. I don’t want to force something you don’t want.”

“But I don’t want you to,” Adam replied.

“What do you mean?” Rocky cocked his head to the side.

Letting out a sigh, Adam began, “this is all just new to me. As much as I hate to admit it, my mother was right. That felt right, touching you, kissing you,” Adam’s eyes lingered on Rocky’s lips briefly before glancing back up at Rocky, “but let’s take it slow and just see what happens?”

“So like you want to date? You just want to fuck? What?” Rocky had an edge to his voice.

“Rocky, look. How long have you felt this way about me?” Adam firmly asked.

Rocky dropped his shoulders as he began to put the pieces together, “I knew how deeply I really cared about you since the summer. I really like you, Adam. Not in just the best friends way. I want something more with you. I want you to be my boyfriend, Adam.”

That appeared to throw Adam off. The admission of feelings felt alien to Rocky as they left his tongue. He had bottled them up for so long and when he vocalized it for the first time, the words were strong. Adam spoke, “I’m not opposed to being in a relationship with you, Rocky. Just realize I only really started questioning my feelings about you over the past few days. I care about you too and you are definitely attractive.” Adam paused to glare at Rocky, “Stop it.”

Rocky couldn’t reign in the lopsided grin and cocky eyes, “I’m attractive, huh?”  Another blush crept across Adam’s features, “So I have a suggestion then, Mr. Park.”

“What is that, Rocky?” Hesitation laced Adam’s words.

“Go out on a date with me? As soon as this stupid lockdown is done, let me take you out for a night on the town. My treat,” Rocky waggled his brows eliciting a laugh from Adam.

“You are such a goofball,” Adam shoved him affectionately, then, stepped into Rocky. “I would like that Mr. DeSantos.”

“Do I get to kiss you?” Rocky could not hide the want.

“Can I stay over tonight?”

 _Adam is going to have to work on his seduction skills_ , Rocky thought. “You can but under one condition.”

“What? I ask your mother first?” Adam joked in response.

“You have to sleep in the bed with me. Though I should warn you, I am known to hog the sheets,” Rocky teased. Adam sheepishly gazed into Rocky’s eyes and attempted an offended gasp. _He needs a lot of work_ , Rocky grimaced.

Adam played along, “Join you in bed before the first date?”

“I promise I will keep it PG,” Rocky leaned into Adam and gently kissed his lover’s lips.


	11. Adam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was the most difficult to write so far. I changed it around a few times, even having to put it down for a bit. I did add a scene in here that I was not expecting, but I ended up really loving it. Let me know what you think?

Adam opened his eyes to find himself standing in the void, a familiarity he became accustomed to. Rita mentioned this was the ‘world between realms.’ Even though Adam did not trust her, this felt like a certain truth as he examined his surroundings.

To describe the space in more detail: it was an endless room layered with impenetrable shadows. His immediate vicinity, a mere few inches, was the only space Adam could perceive. His body almost radiated light, maybe akin to a heat signature, in comparison to the thick clouds that surrounded him. There appeared to be no natural light; although, Adam believed light did not exist here in general, at least to him. Adam was toying with the idea that this is how he perceived this realm and that other individuals might see it differently, a world with light. That was the theory he was developing if his ‘premonitions’ were anything to go by. Regardless, there was no way to verify any proof with others. The thought made Adam feel alone.

As Adam walked along, the shadows appeared to give way to him. Remembering back to his last visit, this void was given form when he had a destination provided to him. That left Adam with the thought of what was so important about this realm and how was he able to access it? The question appeared to prompt the space around him to change. The almost conscious presence within the shadows began to disperse in front of him, a familiar dark and barren path leading to another door. This time however, Adam did not hesitate. He set out on this path until a recognizable figure appeared in his line of vision. Rocky appeared but he believed it to be a fragment of this world, not the actual Rocky. Adam confirmed it when he reached out to touch the presence and thought, _He’s cold_.

“You aren’t Rocky, so what are you? Why are you here?” Adam asked.

“I’m here to serve as a guide of sorts. Well, more of a companion. A familiar face to help assist you should the need arise,” the faux Rocky stated. This definitely was not him. No offense to the man, but Adam never heard anything so eloquent ever leave his Rocky’s mouth.

Questions peppered Adam’s thoughts, “ _Why_ are you here as Rocky though? Why not something like cat or a frog?”

“A frog?” The image of Rocky asked curiously.

“I don’t know. It’s just what came to mind,” Adam responded.

“Well, anyway,” this Rocky patted the front of his shirt, a red sweater accompanied by blue jeans and tennis shoes. The image was accurate. “To answer your question, this image is familiar and most comfortable to you. It reflects the strongest bond you have.”

“What sent you here?”

Rocky chuckled, though it felt more of a formality and did not contain a hint of Rocky’s real emotion, “You created me, through the Power that is. It will all make sense in due time.” He turned and led Adam along the path ahead of them.

Catching up to him and matching his pace, Adam asked, “What do you mean _I_ created you? What is this Power?”

“In essence, I am a spirit guide and you subconsciously gave me a form that you can interpret,” Rocky stopped abruptly, turning to face Adam and presenting a key, “You are unique as you only need one key as you only have one door. You must be powerful indeed.”

Adam had a hard time processing the ‘spirit’s’ words. He inquired, “Rita said the same thing, that I was powerful. What does that mean? What can I do? Why does this realm look so bleak?”

“Your power just started growing. As you become more powerful, you will be able to perceive this realm as it really is and even mold it to your will. For the time being though, we are still in your mind.” Rocky smiled, “Come now, the answers you seek are inside.” He stood eerily still with the key still in hand.

Adam shrugged. He felt there would be no progress if he continued to push the subject. Reaching for the key, Adam took it, “What’s behind this door? What will I see?”

Grimace appeared across this Rocky’s features, “I do not know. That privilege is between you and the great Power alone.” He vanished instantly after speaking.

Adam exhaled a deep breath, “Well no way but forward I guess.” He stepped up to the door, inserted the key and twisted it; the lock gave way. Stepping through the door, it shut immediately and caused the glow of the path to disappear with it.

Examining his surroundings, Adam noticed immediately that he was in an ornate chamber. Foreign structures and designs decorated the room. It was dim except for the almost mechanical lights radiating from nearby surfaces. Some details in the room were clear while others were hazy. Adam could see a circular platform in the center of the chamber as several desk-like structures wrapped around it, the source of the vibrant lights set inside them. As Adam walked up to the platform, a pale blue light enveloped a large primary column with two adjacent columns mirroring a similar light. It appeared to be the focus of the room, almost like a throne room. The center pillar became more luminescent as the blue light turned a pure white, causing warmth to fill his body.

As Adam continued to examine the room several vibrant lights appeared around him: red, pink, and yellow. Adam commented curiously, _Those are the same shade as the Rangers. Is this their base?_ Behind him two more lights phased into being: blue and then a second yellow light. Adam looked down at himself and saw a green light cover him. Glancing back toward who he assumed was Kimberly and the others, the yellow light faded out of existence.

“What is this place?” Adam thought about it a moment before thinking aloud, “Is this supposed to be the future? Do Rocky and I really become Rangers?”

Adam felt an inclination to look in the direction where the door stood. When he did, a large glowing orb appeared before him. Stepping closer, several scenes were displayed in the orb. First, an image of his house appeared. Suddenly fire erupted from it which appeared to be caused by an explosion. The image shocked Adam’s system as he involuntarily yelled, “Mom! Dad!”

As soon as his imagination began to fill in the possibilities, the scenario changed to an image of Aisha smiling at him. It felt surreal as his eyes seemed to be watching a movie. She walked around in front of a thicket. The image briefly blurred and then transitioned to her weaving in between trees. Again, the scene shifted with Aisha halting at the edge of a cliff. His friend appeared to panic as if she was running from something or someone. Suddenly, a woman adorned in a gold brassiere and wielding some type of bladed boomerang approached Aisha and began laughing. The last thing Adam heard was Aisha’s screams.

Adam cringed at the sound as a final vision appeared; it was one of Rocky. His face was strained as an all too familiar figure stood behind him; Rita was choking the life from Rocky. Blood slowly drained from Rocky’s features and on instinct Adam rushed toward the image; his heart clenched tight and panic seeped throughout his veins. The orb dissipated as the door returned in front of him.

Adam attempted to recollect his thoughts as his flight and fight response kept hold of his senses. All the images burned into his mind and only questions flooded his mind, _What did I see? Is that going to happen to everyone? I have to protect them somehow_!

He felt the presence of the dream incarnation of Rocky appear beside him and answered as if reading Adam’s thoughts, “The future is never set in stone, but one often fulfills self-prophecies.”

“So you’re saying I can't stop any of this? Then what is the point of this so called gift!” Adam raised his voice angrily, “and I thought you couldn’t see any of this!?”

“I only learned what was behind the door as you experienced it for yourself. In terms of your premonition, that is for you to figure out. Your power is young. Allow yourself to grow and maybe then you will discover the whole truth. You are merely seeing fragments of the whole.” Rocky advised him. He looked over to Adam, “Be patient. The whole vision will appear to you when you most need it.”

“Like when I foresaw Rita? What about the Green Ranger? I couldn’t understand any of the first vision until it happened. Even then, I don’t understand the rest of the pieces. It was all jumbled.” Adam sounded defeated.

“These recent visions were more concise, were they not?”

“Yeah I guess you are right,” Adam looked up to find Rocky had disappeared, leaving only the door. Adam formed a fist, frustrated that he could not understand more, M _ight as well see what is behind this door. I feel like a puppet being pulled by its strings._

Adam strode toward the door; it was still unlocked. He pushed it open and walked out onto what was his patio. The sight brought comfort to him, _How did I get back home?_ Everything felt so real. He smelled the familiar scents that perfumed the patio: fresh cut grass, jasmine scented candles, his parents’ cooking. There was a breeze that brushed against Adam as warm sunlight hit his skin. Looking around the patio he noticed he was not alone however. At the table sat a terrible sight: Rita. She was looking down at his mother who was leaning back in her favorite chair with guilt ridden across her face.  

Rita did not look at Adam, yet she addressed him, “Come sit, Adam. I've been waiting for you.”

His stomach churned at the sound of his name, “What do you want?”

“Come now, no need to be rude. It was hard enough to find you. You just disappeared from my sights.” She waved a hand as one of his mother’s tea set appeared on the table, “I have tea prepared. Don't let it grow cold.”

Adam refused to move as he tensed his body, ready for action.

Rita stated less patiently, “If I wanted to hurt you, I would have already Adam. Now sit.” Adam felt compelled to obey her command. Reluctantly, he moved to a chair across the table from Rita and sat. She turned to face him and poured a cup for Adam and herself. “It's amazing how realistic this realm can be sometimes.” She placed a saucer in front of Adam, “It’s green tea, your favorite.”

“How did you get here? How do you know any of this!” Adam demanded.

“Mind your manners. You don’t want to disappoint your mother any further now do you?” Rita’s words cut through Adam like a knife as she nursed a sip from her cup. “Ah, a perfect cup of tea.”

Adam stared down Rita, but curiosity played on him. He ventured to try taking a sip from his cup, “Ow! Shit, it’s hot!

“What did you expect?” Rita stated simply as she reached for a cube of sugar and stirred it into her tea.

“So if you aren’t here to kill me, then what are we doing here? Is this really home?” Adam was annoyed that he was being patronized and did not feel like repeating his question a third time.

“This realm, often give many names, is as real as the physical world. It’s merely a different perspective. This plane of existence is unique as it tends to layer itself among all realms. In a manner of speaking, yes this is your planet. You can travel all across this world at your leisure in your dreams, and I can show you how.”

Adam refused to bait himself in and attempted to flip this interrogation around, “Why would you teach me unless you wanted something in return?”

“Now there is a smart question,” Rita sipped her tea again. Clearly, this was a big game to her and Adam knew that she was enjoying every moment of it. “I gave you a fraction of my power. In your pocket is a power coin that will allow you to access it with the assistance of a morpher.

Adam hastily reached into his pocket and indeed there was a coin with a fire emblazoned upon it. Rita continued, “Since I generously bestowed this gift upon you, you, Adam, allowed me to peak into your world here. Now, I know where you live; what it looks like; I can relive your memories here. However, some are kept heavily guarded from me. In due time, you will reveal more of yourself to me.”

“How can you say that I have to give you anything in return since I didn’t accept anything. You forced this upon me!” Adam retorted.

A sly smirk traced Rita’s lips as she began to explain, “Certain laws force me to abide in a certain manner. I don’t write the rules; I merely implement the loop holes.” She leaned toward Adam, “It's like a game of chess. I can't force you to do anything, but I can continue to defeat each of your pawns until I declare ‘checkmate.’ I will continue to bestow you with gifts and in return, you are entitled to elicit limitless wisdom and power from me. A fair trade for your freedom I would say.

Rita stood up and edged her way around the table, eyes stabbing into him like daggers, as she traced patterns with her fingernails against the grain. She stopped beside Adam and reached a hand to clasp his hand shut around the power coin. Leaning in she whispered, “Feel the power surge through you.”

In an instant, an energy and strength filled Adam’s body. His senses were heightened as he perceived his environment in higher detail. Shallow breathing accompanied footsteps that came from deep inside the house. Adam was able to see a shadow moving within the building. His father came into view holding a set of plates. Stepping onto the patio, Adam’s father set the dishes onto the surface of the table and walked over to his mother, arousing his mother from her thoughts. He was saying something but Adam could not hear them.

“Aw, how sweet,” Rita commented at the scene in front of them. “Do not worry child. Hearing humans in this realm is another skill that will improve the more time you spend here.

She turned back to Adam and spoke, “Give into the power Adam. Give into me. All I ask is your obedience.”

“No,” Adam resolved. “I am not going to follow you.”

This spurred a volatile response from the witch, “I have provided knowledge, enlightening you about this realm. I have given you a taste of a greater power. You will learn to obey me, human.” She wrenched his hand upward, lifting Adam off the ground.”

“Get off me!” The coin shone a brilliant green. Adam snapped and flung Rita away from him, the strength far greater than he thought.

Rita laughed wickedly, “Good, good!” She stood up and sauntered over to him. “You will decide how easy or difficult this game that we are playing will be. I am giving you three days to comply. One week from the day of the attack, I will come and I will burn your city. I will take everything that means something to you until you are mine, Adam.” Her gaze fixated on his parents, “I'm sure your parents would love to chat.

“Leave them alone!” Adam charged Rita and threw a fist at her, only to be stopped and quickly overpowered, “My my. Such a temper befitting my pupil.” She smiled wickedly and threw her weight behind her grasp, forcing Adam to bow before her, “Three days, Adam. Then those visions of yours become reality.

Rita cackled loudly as Adam’s head began to spin, “It looks like we will be spending quite some time together.” His vision was darkening. Looking over to his parents, Adam reached out to them until the darkness swallowed him whole.

\----------

Adam was startled awake by the nightmare. Cold sweat covered his body as he oriented himself, recognizing it wasn't his bedroom. Feeling a body fidget beside him, Adam looked over at Rocky who was snuggled up next to him, an arm draped over his torso. The memories sank in as he remembered the events from earlier in the day. His breathing slowed down and a smile splayed across his face. The brief moment was a blessing as the fear of Rita’s haunting had vanished momentarily. He felt gross as the sweat sent shivers through his body. Deciding he wanted to freshen up a bit, he carefully removed Rocky’s arm, as not to disturb him, so he could leave for the bathroom.

After Adam quietly shifted off the bed, Adam headed out of the bedroom and tiptoed down the hallway. Shutting the door behind him, he rushed to the sink and turned it on. Splashing water on his face he gazed up at his face, seeing how heavy his eyes appeared. “Shit!” Adam exclaimed as his shoulder spasmed. Looking at the bruised and stitched up shoulder, the pain reminded him of the medication Adam was subscribed to take in case it acted up. _I forgot to grab my pills, dammit. That's probably why I haven't been dreaming until now,_ he contemplated.

Adam reached into the nearby cabinet and pulled out a towel. He removed his shirt and drenched the towel with water. As he padded his shoulder and the rest of the body, Adam stated irritatingly, “I should keep it wrapped. The damn stitches get pulled at though.” Quickly finishing up, he decided to leave his shirt off. Bruises marred his body. It was a wonder he even survived. Recalling the coin in his dream, Adam reached into his pants and felt a cold, circular object. Fear shot through Adam again as he leaned against the sink. Attempting to quell his emotions, Adam splashed more water against his face and proceeded to dry himself off.

He paused to take a deep breath with the towel pressed to his face. Rocky’s scent was on it. In that moment, more memories replayed in his mind: the sensation of Rocky’s lips grazing his, Rocky’s arms wrapped around his body, Rocky’s body pressed down on top of Adam. His stomach felt light with butterflies as his cock twitched in response. Adam lost himself in his thoughts, imagining Rocky kissing along his neck again and placing light kisses along his stomach which caused him to shudder. He reached down to grab himself through his pants and imagined Rocky was the one touching him. A soft moan escaped his lips.

A knock at the door jarred him. An annoyed grunt escaped him as his pants began to feel constricted. However, that familiar voice followed after the knock, “Hey Adam, you ok?” Rocky sounded panicked.

“Um yeah, I'm fine,” Adam muttered and then opened the door. Rocky appeared to be on edge, but it was hard to focus on that as Rocky clenched his eyes shut and gasped at the invading light. Looking at the disheveled mess of hair and the rest of the image in front of him, Adam chuckled, “I just needed to use the restroom.”

Rocky managed to open his eyes and was wary for a moment before his posture relaxed, “Sorry I felt you panicking. The fear was intense. It woke me up and all I saw were dark shadows coming from the bathroom.”

That remark caught Adam off guard, “Rocky what are you talking about?”

Rocky was quiet for a moment before muttering, “Never mind. Just something I saw.”

They were quiet for a minute. Rocky wobbled as he shifted in place. He appeared to be half asleep still and did not comment any further other than stating, “let's go back bed.” Rocky shuffled back into the bedroom.

Adam shook his head, _He’s cute when he is half asleep like that._ A brief pause occurred in his thoughts. _Huh, cute_. Adam mused. Shutting off the light, he followed after Rocky. Rocky was already rolled over into the wall and snoring softly. Adam began to climb back into bed next to Rocky. The pit of his stomach reacted again as a strange wave of euphoria hit Adam. The behavior of joining Rocky in bed was intimate.

Adam laid on his back, staring at the ceiling above him. His mind was racing. Earlier they ended up falling asleep by snuggling against each other. He was so tired from everything that after hitting the pillow, Adam was instantly knocked out. It felt strange, not only to be able to, but to want to be physically close to Rocky. Rocky had not pursued anything further after he initially groped Adam. He had not intended on launching himself into the air. Mostly, it was just unexpected; however, that brief contact felt wonderful. The thought made him nervous. Adam figured he was ready to be that adventurous. _Or am I? What are we even? Are we still friends? Or lovers? We aren’t… boyfriends._

Regardless, his desire to be close to Rocky was prevalent. Adam turned on his side and shyly scooted closer to Rocky and sheepishly reached a hand out, resting it against Rocky’s back. Rocky was warm to the touch. He knew Rocky was fairly toned and Adam definitely appreciated the male figure as much as a woman’s; however, to actually feel firm muscles, aroused Adam greatly. He felt drawn to Rocky’s body and when Rocky looked at Adam like he was the only person in the world… Kissing him felt wonderful, right. Adam did not realize how well his impulses would respond and he had to say that he enjoyed every minute of it. Ironically, that left Adam more confused than anything. How was he supposed to act? What was he supposed to think?

Adam decided to let his emotions take control. He wrapped an arm tight around Rocky’s waist. The rise and fall of Rocky’s breathing soothed him. The warmth made him feel safe. As he cuddled up against Rocky, Adam thought how Rocky’s body just seemed to meld against his. He nuzzled his head in the crane of Rocky’s neck. Rocky smelled of a light hint of wood and spice, reminiscent of the body wash he used. The scent filled his nostrils and set in his lungs, almost burning, but his need for Rocky grew stronger. It was an alien sensation but Adam liked it. As he closed his eyes, Adam hoped that when he woke up that this part was not a dream. For the first time in days, he felt at peace. The dull ache in his shoulder even seemed to fade as the lull of Rocky’s breathing sent him to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will probably post another chapter on Monday since next week I will be busy with a few recreational activities, such as: Mass Effect Andromeda and the Power Ranger movie.


	12. Rocky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Our first NSFW chapter, mwahahaha. Plot with smut initiated.

Rocky awoke to the smell of breakfast wafting into the room, _Mmm bacon._ He couldn't help the rumble in his stomach that followed. Shifting in his bed, Rocky remembered that he wasn't alone. Adam was curled up behind him with an arm wrapped around his waist. Excitement shot through Rocky as he confirmed that yesterday was real, _I can't believe that really happened. After all that time of hopelessly fantasizing about Adam being with me_ … A smile crept on his face.

Rocky wanted to look at Adam lying peacefully next to him. Carefully, he rotated himself on the bed as not to disturb Adam. There was not stir in response. Rocky adjusted his head on the pillow, now able to see Adam as he thought, _He is even more handsome when he sleeps. He looks so peaceful._ Adam’s curls were puffier than normal, some sticking out while the rest was squished flat beneath the weight of his head. His lips were parted slightly as tiny breathes exhaled from him. His face was devoid of any stress from recent events.

Involuntarily, Rocky reached out and stroked Adam's hair. Glancing over Adam’s injured shoulder, he took in the sight of his bruises and stitching for the first time. Rocky was quickly separated from Adam at the emergency room. Then, as soon as his mother arrived and Adam’s parents were notified, Rocky was whisked away. It looked painful but Adam never really mentioned it over the phone. _He is tougher than I give him credit for._

Yesterday, Rocky remained highly aware of it. The memories flashed through his mind as he remembered the events of that day, hearing the screams caused by pain… Fear would set in for a moment but then disappear just as quickly after realizing he was safe. Gently, Rocky brushed his fingertips over Adam’s shoulder and trailed them down his arm. Rocky did not notice Adam ever taking off his shirt yesterday. _Maybe he had when he woke me up_.

Another barrage of thoughts occurred to him. A wave of panic had jolted him awake. When he scanned the bedroom, Adam was nowhere in sight. The only trace was a faded green aura that shone through the walls, which was quickly becoming clouded with shadows. Rocky heard about auras from one of his instructors at the dojo. He just never accepted that it was potentially a real phenomenon.

Rocky shook his head to focus on the present, never liking to dwell on negative things. There were blotches of purple and yellow bruises all over Adam’s torso. He moved a calloused hand over to Adam’s body, examining the marks with concern, eventually resting his hand against Adam’s chest. The contact began to arouse Rocky as he realized his morning wood stiffened tighter. His touch lingered on Adam a little longer than it should have but his smooth skin was warm and he wanted nothing more than to reach out and claim his would be lover. Curiosity claiming him, Rocky drifted down to peak at Adam’s endowments. He could see Adam’s cock pressing against the fabric of his sweats. Temptation wanted to claim him, yet the last thing Rocky wanted to do was scare Adam off by advancing on him unwelcomely. The good boy in him reigned in his desires. However, that did not keep the fantasies from playing in his mind which caused his member to throb more. It'd been awhile since he had gotten off. Not since the attack really. Four days’ worth of build-up and then the sexual tension created by a make out frenzy caused Rocky’s breath to hitch as lust filled his senses. _Maybe I'll just take care of this in the shower_ , he thought to himself.

Rocky propped himself up only to be met with a set of brown almond shaped eyes to open wearily in front of him. Adam smiled at Rocky. His heart melted and accepted defeat as he fell back onto the bed. “Hey there handsome,” Rocky said warmly.

“Hey, you,” Adam yawned as he gingerly stretched his shoulder. He pulled his hands beneath his pillow and kept his eyes fixated on Rocky.

Rocky braved himself as he inched closer to Adam, “You know I could get used to waking up like this.”

“I would have to say I agree,” Adam did not move but his eyes did roam over Rocky’s face. “The morning light brings out your eyes.”

Rocky blushed at the compliment, “Maybe it’s just you.” His body moved for him as Rocky gently kissed Adam, another set of lips responding. It was a simple kiss but the exchange spoke volumes. Rocky’s chest felt tight with a mix of adoration and uncertainty.

Adam brushed Rocky’s hair away from his face and then caressed Rocky’s face, tracing down his neckline and resting it against Rocky’s chest. Rocky was curious and spoke, “Do you have any regrets?” He tried to keep worry out of his voice.

Seconds seemed to last for hours as Adam contemplated Rocky’s question. Then, with a shy smile, a small voice stated, “None.” Adam reassured Rocky by placing a kiss of his own against Rocky’s lips, lingering longer than the first.

Rocky returned the smile, grinning widely, “Well, good cause I don’t have any intention of letting you go any time soon.”

A pair of fists banged against the bedroom door jolted the boys from their moment. Rocky could hear the voices of his siblings behind the door. “When are you guys going to get up!” one of his brothers chimed.

“Yeah we wanna play with Adam!” The other joined in agreement. His mother’s voice spoke but he couldn't make out any of the words. The patter of feet retreated from the door.

Rocky found Adam giggling with him at the young boys, Josue and Luis. “I don’t want to have to share you,” a pouty lip formed on Rocky.

“How about we get some breakfast and spend some time with your family. Then, we can come back up here?” Adam suggested as he reached for one of Rocky’s hands and held it.

“This is real right?” Rocky was still reeling, “Sorry, I still can’t believe it.”

“I’ve never known you to lack confidence, Rocky. I would be lying if I said I knew what I was doing,” Adam tugged at Rocky’s hand, “C’mon. The smell of that food is making my stomach growl.” Adam moved off the bed and walked over to Rocky’s closet, opening it up and digging through his dresser. He pulled out a plain red tank top and asked, “Can I borrow this?”

A sense of pride filled Rocky as he replied, “Yeah, anything in there is yours.”

Adam blushed, “Thanks. Meet you downstairs?” Rocky nodded as Adam headed out of the bedroom, his eyes drawn to that slim frame.

Rocky let out a contented sigh.

\-----

Sitting at the table with his siblings, Rocky was chowing through his breakfast when Adam stumbled into the dining area. Rocky noticed Adam had stopped by the restroom when he followed after Adam. Luis and Josue practically jumped out of their seats, shouting, “Adam's awake!” and “Why do you sleep so much?”

Adam laughed at the boys. He knelt down and gave each of them a hug,” I just haven't been sleeping much. You two are getting big!”

“Is it true that you fought monsters?” Josue, the younger one, pried.

“Yeah, Rocky told us all about them!” Luis joined in.

Rocky couldn't hide the grin that popped on his face but Adam was not as entertained. His smile faded slightly as he commented, “Yeah we did. Um, why don't you guys go finish breakfast?”

“Mijos! Finish your food! Let Adam eat.” His mother, Maria, commanded. The two ran back to the table and started eating again while talking about monsters and their favorite superheroes.

Adam sat down beside Rocky. He noticed that Adam had covered his shoulder with his jacket. _It’s probably a good idea so mi familia don’t bug him about it_ , Rocky thought. Adam gave a shy grin toward him. His mom placed a plate of food in front of Adam and Rocky watched as he started to dig in.

Nudging Adam’s foot, Rocky asked, “So did you sleep ok?”

Adam politely used a napkin provided to him to wipe his mouth. After finishing his bite, he looked over toward Rocky and said in a low voice, “Just had a nightmare. I’ll tell you about it later?” The expression was enough to indicate what it was about. Rocky did not push the subject.

“So what did you boys do yesterday? You two were up there all day,” his mother had asked the two of them. Rocky blushed as tension spread through his body, and Adam had choked on his food. “Adam! Don't eat your food so fast!” Mom patted Adam’s injured shoulder by accident, causing Adam to jerk in response, which was followed by stifled cry. “Oh, I'm so sorry! I forgot mijo. I'm sorry let me see.”

“No don’t mess with it.” Adam raised his hands up to stop her. He stood up from the table and bowed in apology, “I mean: I’m sorry. Excuse me. I need to use to the restroom real quick.” Rocky noticed his brothers fell silent. Everyone followed Adam with their gazes. Rocky could tell Adam kept himself composed long enough until he reached the stairs. Then, Rocky heard Adam bolt up the steps when he was out of sight.

Rocky exchanged looks with his mother, “It's ok, Mama. He is still just worn out from everything that happened you know?” Rocky’s mother’s face appeared guilty. He reached over and grabbed her hand, comforting her, “Hey don't worry about it. I'll go check up on him, yeah?” Rocky scarfed down the last couple of bites of food, not willing to let his stomach go without his mothers cooking, and followed Adam up the stairs.

Walking past his sister’s room, Rocky could hear some of Isabela’s favorite music playing. Isabela had kept to herself since the attack happened. She heard what happened to Adam and her brother. Unfortunately, she also saw a few of the monsters as her bus passed by Central Plaza on her way home from school; they terrified her. Rocky was able to ease her fears a little after spending some time with her over the weekend. It did not help matters as their father was barred from entering the city due to the lockdown. His father tended to commute between Angel Grove and Stone Canyon for work.

Shaking the thoughts from his head, Rocky continued down the hall and poked his head inside his bedroom, but Adam was not present. Moving over to the bathroom, Rocky knocked on the closed door.” Hey Adam, it's Rocky. Can I come in?”

After a few seconds the door clicked, indicating it was now unlocked. Rocky stepped inside to see Adam peering over the sink, one of the stitches had torn open. Adam saw the worry in his expression through the mirror and responded immediately, “One of the stiches got caught on the jacket and was yanked out when I jerked from your mom’s touch. Sorry. I didn’t mean to react that way. I'll be fine; I just need to wrap it and clean it up.”

Rocky shut the door behind him and dug under the sink to take out the emergency kit. Taking out a roll of bandages and other supplies, Rocky set himself to fixing the afflicted area. “You know you should have kept it wrapped it this entire time, Adam.” He stated sternly. Rocky could not help it as was normally protective as is. Becoming intimate with Adam was going to increase that. He would have to make sure he was not overprotective.

Adam muttered a simple, “I know.” Nothing else was said until Rocky had finished. Adam spoke up again, “I left my pain medication at the house. I think that's why I also dreamed again.”

Rocky paused, “Like see the future kind of dream?”

Adam nodded and then started to relay the dream. Rocky attentively listened, not even budging at the mention of some ‘other’ Rocky. However, Adam’s next comment worried him, “I also saw Rita. I don’t know how but it was actually her.”

“What do you mean it was her?” Rocky raised his voice in concern.

“I can't explain it but somehow, she is inside my head.” He rummaged around in his sweats and pulled out a coin from his pocket. It had what looked like a trident head or a flame on it, “I found this in my pocket this morning. I’m not sure how it got there since she gave it to me in the dream. There is something else,” Adam lifted up his shirt to reveal that the bruises were completely clear. Rocky traced the skin. He felt goosebumps form where his fingertips touched. Adam shivered in response.

“Does it hurt?” Rocky asked.

Adam shook his head, “Not much. My shoulder aches a lot still but I think that's even starting to heal quicker.”

Not sure what to think of it, Rocky jested, “I don’t know. It still looks pretty gross to me.”  A smile stretched across his lips.

Adam returned the expression and jerked an elbow into Rocky’s side, “Jerk.”

Rocky was fixated on Adam as they exchanged looks with each other. Rocky couldn't help but to let his eyes wander over Adam’s body. For once, he felt it was alright to visibly act on his feelings. He mapped out the man’s features more intimately. Noticing the dark lull of brown in his eyes, how his lashes were full and gorgeous. His lips were a light shade of pink. The dip in Adam’s neck was soft as Rocky remembered exploring it with his lips. Those shoulders were slim but the tinge of olive colored skin held firm muscles underneath. Hunger built in his chest as Rocky felt his perspective become more carnal.

Adam must have picked up on it as he invited Rocky, “You can kiss me again.” Adam’s face turned a light shade of pink, but he held his gaze strong toward Rocky. Maybe Adam was more nervous than shy. Rocky inched closer toward Adam and placed one hand on his hip while bringing the other to cup the side of Adam’s face. The tips of his fingers tousled at the jet black hair.

Readjusting his position, Adam pressed himself against Rocky. Their builds were about the same but Adam seemed slightly more petit as Rocky gazed into Adam’s eyes. Rocky hesitated for a moment, unsure if he was dreaming again. This moment felt so surreal as all reasoning and senses left him. Licking his lips, He leaned in and placed his lips softly against Adam’s.

Adam had pressed a hand against the side of Rocky’s face, mirroring Rocky. Adam was shaking slightly, but he could tell Adam wanted to explore more. Adam pulled Rocky into him by placing an arm on the base of his back. The hand settled on Rocky’s face trailed into his hair and gently held the back of his head. Adam was the first to move his soft lips against Rocky’s and it filled a sense within Rocky that he was wanted. It was not one sided. Rocky became weak in the knees as Adam drove further into him. Lips parted and closed continuously as Rocky felt his body respond with that familiar ache. He needed more stimulation.

Almost as if he read Rocky’s mind, Adam surprised Rocky. He slowly pushed Rocky against the bathroom wall and as he tended to Rocky’s lips, one hand palmed Rocky’s pants as the other ran a hand underneath his shirt. The touch flared his nerves. Rocky felt he was on fire. The audible gasp that released from his lungs fueled Adam on. His nipples perked as Adam stimulated them. His cock throbbed and Rocky felt himself leaking from the Adam’s attentiveness. He was in heaven.

In between breaths, Rocky began to ask, “Adam are you ok with…”

Adam paused kissing him for a moment as Rocky opened his eyes and to see him. Adam responded, “Honestly, I'm scared… I want to do this with you though.”

Rocky’s vision was hazy through half lidded eyes, “Only if you want to Adam.” Adam nodded.

“Kiss me,” Rocky pleaded.

Adam sealed Rocky's lips and tugged his shorts down. One layer of clothing was shed and one layer was left before there was skin-on-skin contact. Rocky actually began to shake from being so nervous and he found himself unable to control his responses. This is what he always wanted but being his first experience and with the guy he has had a huge crush on, he was charting unknown territory. Adam’s touch began to shake too as he fidgeted with the waistband of Rocky’s boxers. Adam pulled away, his breath shallow.

Rocky could barely stifle a laugh, “I'm sorry. I can't help being nervous when a handsome guy like you is all over me.”

“Yeah, me too.” Adam winced knowing it was a poor response. It was endearing. Regaining himself, Adam mumbled nervously, “Must be that Latin heat.”

Rocky grinned too eagerly at that. He pulled Adam to him but kept his face far enough apart to convey the seriousness of his intentions, “I want you Adam, but I don't want you to feel like you have to do anything. I want us to be ready; no, _you_ , to be ready when _you_ feel it's right. I'm happy without you getting me off.”

His words brought color back to Adam’s complexion, “I know Rock. I feel safe with you. But I do want to please you. I don't want to think about it too much otherwise I won't do what I'm about to.”

“What do you mean?”

Adam slid down to his knees and slowly pulled the briefs down, exposing Rocky’s uncut cock. Looking down Adam paused briefly, seeming to take in the wonder of his body. Rocky automatically said, “He doesn't bite. He’s a friendly guy once you get to know him.”

Adam choked on the comment. He didn't really appear to know how to respond so he merely stated, “Let me know if it feels good or not?”

Rocky began to say something else when he was interrupted by a warmth that enveloped him. He had to force himself from moaning aloud. His eyes rolled back as intense pleasure vibrated through his libido. Adam slowly worked his way down his shaft and eased up, taking what he could. After sucking a few times, Adam pulled away to catch his breath and looked up at Rocky, “How was that?”

Breathless, Rocky replied, “Holy shit that feels good, babe. Just, uh, watch the teeth a little bit?”

Adam’s face flushed in embarrassment, but he nodded before taking Rocky in his mouth again. Adam ventured more by using one hand to rub gently against his balls. The touch made his balls ache as he felt a strong surge to want to cum. Adam began to pick up a comfortable rhythm and used the other hand to brace himself against the wall. Each time he pulled back and his tongue brushed against Rocky’s head, his stomach tightened a little more.

The stimulation was becoming too much as Rocky felt his climax building, “Adam I'm uh… I'm gonna cum soon. You uh don't have to…” Adam used his free hand and placed it on his abs as he maintained momentum.

Within a seconds Rocky felt himself spasm, “Shit Adam. I'm gonna…” He reeled back and bumped his head against the wall as he felt his load shoot into Adam’a mouth. The pleasure was the most intense sensation he had ever felt. Rocky choked on his moans to keep from making more noise.

Adam coughed as he used his free hand to milk the rest of Rocky’s seed. Once the spasms stopped Adam stood up, spun around and spit into the sink. He rinsed his mouth a couple times as Rocky felt heat rise up the back of his neck. “Sorry,” was all Rocky could muster. His head was still reeling from his orgasm.

Adam finished and turned back around to face Rocky. He smiled and looked down at Rocky’s cock. Rocky gazed down with his eyes to notice Adam was erect beneath his sweats. Adam tugged gently at Rocky causing him to twitch at the pull.

Adam pecked Rocky on the lips, but Rocky grabbed the back of Adam’s neck and pushed his tongue in, tasting a mix of Adam and himself. He broke the kiss and rested his forehead against Adam’s, “Thanks babe.” Rocky blushed realizing he had called Adam that not once, but twice.

That rewarded him with a chuckle as Adam said, “I wanted to do that. I enjoyed it. A lot, actually.” He giggled and that warranted a warm feeling within Rocky’s chest. Adam continued, “Sorry about that.” He gestured toward the sink, “I wasn't quite expecting the sensation; made me gag a little. Sorry if that wasn't sexy.”

“Oh no, trust me. You were hot as hell.”

Adam looked down bashfully. He pulled Rocky’s shorts up, “You really think I'm that attractive?” He gingerly placed the waistband on Rocky's hips and let his thumbs rub against the skin above it. It felt soothing to Rocky.

“Of course I do. Why? you think you aren't hot? I've always found you sexy as hell,” Rocky admitted.

Adam blushed harder, “I've just never had anyone tell me that before.”

Rocky kissed Adam’s lips this time, “I'll make sure to let you know more often then.” Rocky lowered his voice, “Do you want me to?” He asked while wagging his eyebrows suggestively. He gripped Adam through his sweats. The man jumped at the reaction again but didn't pull away. Rocky felt Adam’s breath break as the warm air brushed his cheek.

Unexpectedly, Adam grabbed Rocky’s hand and pulled it away, “Don't worry about it Rocky.” Adam appeared to shut down momentarily as he refocused his eyes. “C’mon let’s get out of here before anyone suspects us.

Adam went to grab the door handle. He stopped to look at Rocky and kissed his cheek, leaning in to whisper, “Maybe I can play with him some more later on tonight.” Then, he licked and nibbled Rocky's earlobe gently, “See, I'm learning.”

Adam pulled away and went through the door, leaving Rocky at full attention again.


	13. Rocky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the long wait! I did graduate with my Associate's this past semester and received all A's in my courses! I wanted to make sure I wrapped up my semester well and I was writing a ton of papers for a Comic Literature class as well as History and Government papers. Then, I have been taking some personal time to take care of projects and get re-admitted to the University of Houston.
> 
> I plan on going back to trying to churn out a chapter every Thursday/Friday. I have been rehashing how I want to go about the rest of this fic. I had a few chapters written but ended up scratching them out and came to a better decision. I really do appreciate everyone's comments and feedback as it was a strong source of inspiration for me to continue writing this fic. Also a shout out to my beta reader with whom it has made this writing experience even more enjoyable! Without further ado, enjoy Chapter 13!

_Tuesday, December 13, 1994_

_The Police, The Military, and Teenagers?_

_The police department has officially granted freedom of its residents to traverse the city of Stone Canyon with restrictions only limited to the Grand Plaza area of town as the scene is still under police investigation. The mayor has made a declaration of the United States military having investigated the area with some units remaining within the city in order to ensure the protection of our civilians to any potential secondary attacks. However, citizens entering the city are required to undergo a thorough investigation before being granted entrance within city limits. Officers and military personal are posted along all major routes entering the city with minor roads still under temporary suspension. Citizens will be relieved to know they will be able to reunite with their loved ones after such a traumatic event._

_Little information is known about the terrorist attack still. Key witnesses state seeing some of our local residents, teenagers to be exact, assisting in fighting the unknown assailants. These heroes, Adam Park and Rocky DeSantos, were among our youth that demonstrated such outstanding bravery. The Mayor declared holding a vigil at town hall for the lives that were lost and to honor those brave individuals on Friday, December 16, 1994, at 7pm._

_Classes will resume Wednesday, December 14, 1994, for Stone Canyon’s school districts…_

Rocky pushed himself away from the table with paper in hand as he ascended the stairs, skipping every second or third step. Once atop of the stairs, he bolted down the hall yelling Adam’s name, “Adam! Adam! We’re famous!” He pushed open the door to see Adam stare at him wide-eyed and confused with a phone in his hand.

“Uh, what are you talking about Rocky?” Adam spoke back into the receiver, “Hold on a second, Aisha.”

Rocky strolled over to Adam and raised the front page of the newspaper and pointed at it, “Look at what this says. I completely forgot to check up on the news this morning to see what’s going on with the town. You know what this means: Dad should be home soon!” Adam had barely retrieved the newspaper from Rocky’s hands as he turned to run to his sister’s room.

Approaching the door, Rocky slowed down to a halt and gingerly knocked, completely changing his demeanor to accommodate Isabela’s recent behavior. Rocky spoke after no response was made, “Hey, Isabela, it’s Rocky. I got some great news for ya. Can I come  in?”

Another minute passed before the door opened. Stepping in, Rocky saw Isabela walking back over to her bed where a book was propped open. She enjoyed reading regularly and it was also a way she kept herself distracted whenever she was upset about something. Walking to the bed, Rocky sat down across from her and waited. He wanted to make sure his sister was receptive whenever he talked to her. Isabela was still quiet, their father’s predicament still upsetting her.

“So I read the newspaper today. It looks like they are letting people back into town. Dad should be home soon!” Rocky could not keep the excitement from coming out. Their entire family was worried sick about him and they had not heard single word from Rocky’s father over the course of the weekend. There was still no answer from him today. Not even a simple call over the phone to let them know he was alright. More than likely it was not his fault but explaining that to his siblings was difficult.

Isabela finally looked up at Rocky and stated, “I saw but that doesn’t mean anything. He should have been here. He could have let us know that he was safe or something. For all we know he could be…” She choked back the emotions that wanted to flare up, allowing her anger to cover her weakness, much like their mother. “Why does he always have to go out on trips? Why can’t he ever stay home and work?”

Rocky was silent as he slowly processed her words, his attention distracted by the visible emotions that he saw. A flare of blue light hung around Isabela’s head that grew darker the more Isabela’s thoughts appeared sad upon reflecting about their dad. However, Rocky saw her emotions change almost instantly to anger with red wisps caressing her body as her demeanor and tone changed.

Rocky shook his head and rubbed his eyes to clear his vision. Upon looking back up at his sister, the colors had faded except for a faint yellow aura that surrounded his sister. He scrambled through his thoughts for the best response to comfort her, “Look I can understand being angry. What happened was scary. I know; I was there…”

Isabela quickly interrupted him, “Yeah, you are some big hero now. Who cares, Rocky. You got to be the hero like you always wanted. What about us? How about a father being here for his family when his son could have died? Or that his wife is worried sick? Or him being there for his daughter to give her a peace of mind when every night she has nightmares of those monsters killing him…” Isabela broke down into tears.

Leaning over, Rocky moved the book out of the way and pulled his sister into his arms, “It’s going to be ok. The paper said they have let people in already. Why don’t Adam and I go looking for him? We can bring him back.”

His sister stopped crying and looked up at Rocky, “I don’t want you two to get hurt. Who knows; there could be more monsters out there.”

“Look,” Rocky paused for a moment. “If there were any more of those Putties out there, the town would have known about it by now.”

“Putties? That’s what those things are?”

“Never mind what they are called. Adam and I will go find Dad. Please get out of your room though, if anything just to go get something better to eat. Mama, Josue, and Luis would love to see you out and about; we miss seeing that smile of yours. Besides, Mama could use the help. The boys need their fourteen year old sister to keep them in line,” Rocky served his best puppy dog face for his sister.

It appeared to have worked as Isabela pulled Rocky in tight hug, squeezing her arms around his ribcage. A slight soreness arose from Friday’s events and that cued Rocky to move out of her bear grasp, “Ok, you are squeezing me. Can’t breathe.”

A second later Rocky was released as he exhaled a large sigh. Isabela laughed at his exaggerated behavior and stood up. Rocky rose with her and chuckled as he stroked his sister’s hair affectionately.

Thinking of Isabela’s earlier comment, Rocky became serious as he explained, “Also, trust me when I say I am just as scared as you guys are. Just because I fought those monsters doesn’t mean that I wasn’t scared. I… was terrified. The feeling that I may have lost my family, at any moment… or Adam…”

Rocky went silent for a moment. It was an unsettling thought that barraged his dreams at night. Seeing everyone being taken away from him was an unbearable sight. Cold sweat and a pounding in his chest was what he awoke to the past few nights. It was what clouded his mind when he saw Adam missing from bed the night before. It felt as if it was his burden to bear though. He had to be the strong one for his family. As much as he wished to curl up and let his tears run, Rocky had to be their anchor.

Shifting in position, Rocky beamed a smile at Isabela, “The fighting is what kept me going that day.”

As they walked toward the bedroom door, Rocky could not help but notice the curiosity on his sister’s face as she began to explain, “You shouldn’t have to carry such a burden. I can see what you feel for him. You should let him know.”

Rocky thought to himself _, Does everyone already know how I’ve really felt before I got the chance to tell them? I didn’t even realize it until Aisha told me._ Knowing his sister was too insightful for her own good, Rocky attempted to keep his cool by playing innocent, “Isabela, what do you mean?” Ironically, they were stopped by the image of Adam leaning against the wall upon exiting Isabela’s room, Rocky’s heart skipping a beat.

“Hey there Isabela,” Adam smiled sheepishly at her.

Isabela went quiet as she eagerly embraced Adam and nuzzled into him. Adam chuckled in response. A slight tinge of jealously sparked in Rocky’s chest, but it went away almost immediately. The sign of affection was nothing more than his sister happy to see another member of the family. Rocky mostly wished he could hug Adam intimately around his family…

Watching the two before him, Rocky made himself smile. Adam placed his hands on Isabela’s shoulders and pulled her away in order to look at her. Adam spoke, “I’m glad you came out. I missed seeing you around here.”

Isabela looked up at the man, “Hey Adam?”

“What’s up?”

“Take care of Rocky for me. He is more fragile than he lets on.” Isabela let go and turned to embrace Rocky in another hug quickly. Then, she headed down the stairs and shouted behind her, “You two be careful!”

Rocky turned toward Adam and felt his face turn scarlet as Adam looked away shyly in return. “She’s too smart,” a sigh escaped Rocky’s lips. Yet, he could not prevent the smile that formed, happy to hear his sister sound more herself. Turning to Adam, he asked, “So how long have you been standing there, Nosy?”

Adam’s cleared his voice before speaking, “Long enough to hear I’ve been recruited to go help find your father.” Adam smiled briefly before changing his expression to one more serious, “I filled Aisha on everything that happened.”

Rocky’s heart skipped another beat as he rambled in his head, _Wait Aisha knows everything everything!? I at least wanted to wait until I saw her again. I mean I haven’t even been able to fully process everything still. Like what are? Does Adam like me? How do I tell my family? What do I tell my family? Can I hold his hand whenever I want? Do I get to kiss him?_

Almost on cue as if Adam read Rocky’s mind, a chuckle came from the man standing in front of him, “No Rocky I didn’t tell her about us. But, you know she will find out before we even tell her right?”

Rocky relaxed his shoulders, not even realizing how tense they were. He tried to play off his feelings, “Yeah, I knew that. I was just…”

His heart jumped as a pair of soft, warm lips pressed against Rocky’s. The calming effect was immediate and Rocky’s eyes became lidded. “Calm down, Rock,” Adam said reassuringly while rubbing Rocky’s arm. Goosebumps began to run up his arm and Rocky could not help the elated feeling in the pit of his stomach. Subconsciously, Rocky reached for Adam’s hand and held it. Rocky looked at Adam and a warm smile spread across Rocky’s face as Adam blushed, but Adam not let go of his hand.

“What else did Aisha say?”

“Well,” Adam began, “she is bummed that she did not get invited to the slumber party. Otherwise, she had read the paper earlier as well. Supposedly the news station attempted to stop at my place for an interview, but I wasn’t home. They went over to Aisha’s then. I don’t know why though.”

“Wait does that mean?”

“Yep, they are probably headed here soon.”

Almost immediately as if on cue, the doorbell rang. Rocky heard the door open, accompanied by several voices before a familiar voice rang through the house, “Mama! The news is here!”

Rocky glanced over to Adam, “Time to go!” Adam followed behind him, their hands still intertwined.

“I thought you would want the attention, Mr. Hero,” Adam’s sarcasm calling out Rocky.

“Well I know how you feel about crowds and having the spotlight on you. I figure I would save you from such embarrassment.”

“They are here at your house, Rocky,” Adam chided.

“Yes, but both of our names are in the paper,” Rocky let go of Adam’s hand, missing the warmth already, yet busied himself looking for his wallet and keys in the mess on his desk.

“Touché,” was Adam’s only response.

After digging around a bit, Rocky was able to find his keys. Marching to the window, Rocky threw it open and began climbing out. Adam’s voice rose with shock, “What are you doing!?”

Pausing with one leg out of the window, Rocky looked up, “Getting us out of the house. We probably should stop and pick up Aisha first, but I wanted to go look for dad anyway. The paparazzi just give us a better excuse to get out of here.”

Adam appeared to be dazed but immediately agreed, “Ok, let’s go.” He chased after Rocky.

The two of them were able to climb out of the window and jump down onto the path that ran by the side of the house when another voice peered over them from the window. Looking up, Rocky saw his mother with an angry expression and yelling, although not too loud from what he assumed was to keep the news reporters from being alerted to their presence.

“Mijo! What are you doing?” His mother demanded an answer. That was the voice that indicated her children should be scared. Even Adam experienced it once and Rocky could tell by how erect his posture had become.

“Mama, we don’t want to be on the news. We are gonna go get Aisha and look for dad.” Rocky tried his best to keep from being loud.

“No, you climb right back in here and get those people out.”

“But, Mama, if I go out there, I’d have to invite them in for an interview. The house hasn’t been cleaned in awhile,” Rocky hoped playing to his Mom’s habits would work.

Apparently, it had, “Be careful with the car and fill it up before you get home. Call me when you get to Aisha’s. Isabela!” The window shut at the last comment.

“I can’t believe that worked,” Rocky said.

“I can’t believe it did either. She used the voice,” Adam agreed.

“C’mon let’s go!” Rocky patted Adam’s arm as they snuck off to the street, away from the crowd of reporters outside of the DeSantos residence.

They scrambled over the neighbors’ fence and ran behind their bushes to stay hidden best they can. Carefully, Rocky pushed open the front gate and shuffled onto the main sidewalk. Adam closed the fence behind them and they hurried into Rocky’s mother’s car kept park at the foot of the drive way. Luckily the driveway was long with the house tucked toward the back of the property. The front yard was bigger than the back and a patio was attached to the front of the house where the news reporters gathered. The news van was further in the driveway, which would make their escape easier.

Turning the car on, Rocky beamed a smile, “Damn, it feels like it’s been forever since we had any fun.” He looked over toward Adam, “And I have a hot partner in crime. You should kiss me as a reward you know.”

“Do you really deserve it? We almost got stopped. I’d say your mother is the one that deserves the reward.”

“Gross, Adam,” Rocky felt the pit of his stomach lurch. “You were joking right?”

Adam leaned in and kissed Rocky. The action still a surprise to Rocky, his mind took a second to register before he leaned into Adam’s lips and deepened the kiss. Rocky raised a hand to Adam’s cheek, tousling the curls that hung around his ear. Adam wrapped an arm around Rocky’s neck, the heat emanating from their bodies. Rocky felt flushed and hot as his body responded more fervently. The passion of Adam’s kiss, the parting and closing of lips, the caress of Adam’s tongue against Rocky’s, left Rocky breathless. Adam ran a hand underneath Rocky’s shirt and sent shivers throughout his body. A moan escaped Rocky’s lips as Adam squeezed Rocky’s nipple.

“Fuck, babe... I... I...” Each utterance was broken between kisses.

Adam seemed to change completely. The calm, rational Adam replaced by a man given into carnal desires. The rush went straight to Rocky’s cock as it pressed tight within his shorts. Adam laughed, a hint of lust hanging at the edge of his words, “You like this, huh?”

All Rocky could say was, “Yeah,” as he nodded his head.

Adam broke contact, a chill in the air filling the gap. Rocky was glossing over Adam as he saw the man biting his lip, almost seductively. “Fuck, you’re hot.”

Adam glanced at Rocky’s crotch, smiling at his accomplishment. Adam looked around and then changed his tone almost immediately, “We should get going.”

Coming out of his lust filled haze, Rocky snapped forward, “Why? What’s wrong?” Mirroring Adam, he looked around as well. The news reporters had not appeared to notice them yet. _It had only been about five minutes that we were making out right?_ Looking around more, Rocky saw his neighbors staring at them with eyes and mouths agape. “Shit, ok, yeah. Let’s go.”

Rocky drove away from his house and bolted down the road, hoping to get some distance in before anyone took notice of their disappearance. After a few minutes of quiet passed between them, Rocky glanced at Adam who was staring out the window. Rocky’s cock was still hard from their previous passionate exchange. He felt that it was his responsibility for making Adam uncomfortable. _Adam was the one to have initiated it though, so there was no reason I should feel guilty, right?_  Inside, Rocky was a little anxious about his neighbors seeing Adam and Rocky’s true colors. Simultaneously, it was also a huge relief. The more people that knew, the less that Rocky had to hide.

“Adam, I’m sorry.”

Adam was quiet for a moment and was surprised to feel Adam grab his hand. “It wasn’t your fault. I led it on. I just freaked out. I got so caught up in you that I…” Adam was looking at Rocky while he was talking. The next time Rocky turned to face Adam, his friend, _Lover?_ , was looking away again.

“Do you feel forced into this?” Rocky spoke before his mind registered what he said. However, it was a thought that he could not keep out of his mind.

Almost immediately, Adam comforted Rocky by saying, “No, I wanted to kiss you. It’s as simple as that.”

Another question appeared in Rocky’s mind and left his tongue before he could reel it in, “Are you uncomfortable with your sexuality?”

Adam shifted in his seat, sitting more upright, “I’m not sure. I’m not sure about a lot of my feelings right now. Everything is mixed up.”

A strong wave of euphoria came over Rocky, followed by sadness. Rocky felt uncertain, confused, and underneath it all, a little angry. Glancing back over to Adam, he saw his green aura flare, with sparks of blue and red highlighting him. Letting go of Adam’s hand, Rocky felt the feelings dim a little as his own feelings of happiness and excitement returned.

Grabbing the steering wheel with both hands and approaching Aisha’s quickly, Rocky stated, “I can feel you, ya know? Ever since Friday, I have been able to pick up people’s feelings sometimes. Like it’s not like I guess what they are feeling based on body language or anything. When a strong enough feeling surges, I can see their aura. Kinda like what our instructor talked about with chakras? Yours is green. Right now you feel confused, scared, a little angry…

From the corner of his eye, Rocky could see Adam look at him. He was a little shocked but attentive as Rocky continued, “Friday, when we were attacked and I was fighting with the rangers, I could feel Jason and Trini become so angry. It consumed me. All the worry I felt for you and all the fear I had for us was gone. I could only see red. I yelled at them and told them to calm down, and they did. By force. My power calmed them and their auras became clear.”

Adam asked quietly after Rocky had finished, “So those times I felt calm after you touched me, that was you?”

Another minute passed by before Rocky stated simply, “Yes. Not intentionally, but I could feel and see the change happen within you.”

“I can see the future and you can dictate feelings.”

“Kimberly can read minds,” Rocky said almost jokingly, trying to keep his spirits up. He was worried that Adam may think that everything happening between them, their intimacy, was superficial.

“I briefly remember. Kim just knew things about me.”

“She tested it out,” Rocky fidgeted in his seat, but then smiled. “Kimberly told me to picture you in my head, and she was able to read deeper into my mind. She knows how I feel about you.”

Adam chuckled, “A psychic, an empath, a telepath… What about Aisha?”

At the mention of Aisha’s name, Rocky and Adam had arrived at her house. Rocky pulled into the driveway and parked the car. “I don’t know. Why don’t we go ask her?”

“Good idea,” Adam went to push the car door open when he stopped and turned to Rocky. He grabbed Rocky’s shoulder and spoke, “Thank you, Rocky. Some things make more sense now, and I needed that.”

“I just hope you trust that what you feel is real. I promise I’m not trying to force your feelings,” Rocky became somber, regretting telling him anything for fear of Adam ending what had to arguably be the best thing to have happened in Rocky’s life, aside from the day that Rocky met Adam.  


A tight squeeze of Rocky’s shoulder and a kiss to his cheek brought him out of his thoughts, “Rocky, I trust you. I just need to time to figure out what I _know_ are my feelings.”

Adam exited the car with Rocky following suite. As they walked, Adam asked, “So what happened to the truck?”

“I don’t know. I couldn’t find it anywhere. It probably got destroyed in the attack,” Rocky shrugged.

“Or maybe it became a monster,” Adam remarked as they stopped at the front door and knocked.

“Wait, Rita can’t do that can she?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: I will start posting in the chapter title whose perspective it is from to help clarify for the reader. I will go back and apply the same principal to previous chapters. Thank you!


	14. Adam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello readers! I wanted to apologize for such a long delay since I last updated. I added a comment at the end of Chapter 13 a couple of days ago, but I wanted to reiterate some things. I have been dealing with a lot of stuff: starting my degree program, balancing work, dealing with personal situations. As an apology I will upload a few chapter together. I have a few comments I will add to the next couple of chapters. Please enjoy!

Adam stood beside Rocky at the front door losing track of how much time they spent standing there. He saw Rocky knock a second time with no response from the other side of the door. After waiting around another minute Rocky turned to Adam, “That’s weird don’t you think? Guess they’re not home?” 

Something did not set well with Adam. “I don’t know Rocky. I don’t see why they would leave. I was just talking to her over the phone not too long ago. Maybe we should go around back and check the patio door?”

Rocky nodded and followed Adam as he led the two of them around the side of the house. It was a privilege Adam and Rocky had earned over the years. Anytime they needed a place to escape to, Aisha’s father had allowed them to come in through the back entrance. There was a loose brick hidden behind an old sculpture that belonged to Aisha’s mother that held a spare key inside. Being a private investigator, Mr. Campbell was notoriously paranoid about their safety. The stories he would tell them of previous cases were both thrilling and disturbing to ponder. Once Aisha’s father granted them open-door access, Aisha said it basically meant they were inducted into her family as much as Adam and the others were into their respective families.

With a little help from Rocky, Adam had plucked the key from its hiding spot and quickly unlocked the back door. Going inside, Adam rapped a familiar pattern on the door to indicate who was barging into the Campbell home. The lights were out and the house was relatively quiet.

Adam stepped inside and calmly called out, “Aisha? Mr. Campbell? It’s me, Adam. Rocky’s here with me as well.”

Adam briefly looked around before turning to notice Rocky’s brows turn up in concern, “Hello? Mr. Campbell? Lil sis’?” Rocky shrugged his shoulders after no response was given, “Guess no one really is home after all.”

“Yeah, but their car is in the driveway still. Let’s take a look around,” Adam stated as he split from Rocky.

Adam headed down the hallway leading to Aisha’s bedroom. He could hear Rocky shuffling through the refrigerator the further Adam drifted from him. Toward the end of the hall, Adam heard some make shift sounds coming from behind Aisha’s bedroom door. As he approached closer, Adam’s heart quickened as he heard someone sniffling. Adam did not know what to expect as he knocked, “Aisha?”

Upon entering Adam heard a scream as something unexpectedly soft collided with his head. The unknown entity startled him as he jumped and yelled, “What the!?”

“Who are you! Get out of here!” Aisha’s voice came closer to him as a barrage of hits from what he recognized was a pillow continued to pelt him.

“Whoa, whoa! It’s just me, Adam, Aisha!”

The mad flurry of down feathers came to a halt as a large sigh of relief escaped from Aisha, “Jesus Adam. You scared me. You could’ve warned me you know.”

“We tried. We knocked and yelled in the house. Is your dad home?”

“Nah,” Aisha backed away allowing room for Adam to enter. “He went to go pick up some supplies from the Red Cross station a few blocks down.”

“But your car…”

“Dad wanted to walk. Can’t say I blame him. He’s been as cooped up as we all have. I just have been on house arrest otherwise I would’ve been long gone. You know how paranoid Dad gets, especially with everything going on.”

Adam chuckled, “Yeah. Believe me, I know.”

“Where’s Rocky?” Aisha asked.

Right on cue, Rocky appeared with a half-eaten sandwich in one hand and a soda in the other, “Hey gah wuh wih ah duh…”

“Rocky. Chew, then swallow,” Aisha could not hold back a laugh. “Who taught you manners?”

Adam joined in Aisha’s laughter as Rocky swigged down the piece of sandwich in his mouth with his drink, “I was trying to say what’s up with all the noise?” Rocky paused for a moment staring intently at Aisha, “Hey are you ok? Have you been crying?”

Examining Aisha’s facial features, her eyes did appear puffy and watery. Aisha began acting nervously and looked away from Rocky and Adam as she began to state, “No, I was just startled.” Aisha walked over to her bedside table and shuffled some items around before the sound of keys jingling met Adam’s ears. 

A box of tissues fell off the table and landed beside Aisha’s feet. She bent down to pick it up as she knocked some miscellaneous items over. However, he noticed a simple frame, one that held her mother’s picture, had been turned upside down. Adam walked further into the room, “Aisha are you ok?”

She did not look at either of them, “Yeah, I’m fine. Just grabbing my keys and stuff before we head out.”

“Aisha the last thing we should be doing is keeping things from each other, especially at a time where our lives are being threatened by monsters and witches,” Adam commented.

“Well, what about you? What about your feelings to all of this. Sure you have told us about your dreams, the issue with your parents, but how are you really feeling about it? You burden yourself with this fear of not knowing how to deal with a situation and you shut yourself out from us.”

“Aisha, I don’t think that’s fair to say,” Rocky stated.

“Oh? Is it Rocky? What about you? You’ve been holding secrets a lot longer than you have been letting on. I think it’d actually be good for you to let some of that out.”

Rocky began to retort, “That’s none of…”

“Yeah, it is my business Rocky. You guys are my family and it has been so hard since…” Aisha silenced herself before she continued her statement, reliving her mother’s death.

Adam was angry, yet he attempted to remain subjective about the situation. Shaking his head, Adam realized he was doing exactly as Aisha was telling him. Maybe Adam should just let go of everything and stop trying to manage on his own. Adam thought that he was open with his best friends, but the truth was that Rocky was the only one with which he was letting his guard down. Even then, Adam had difficulty conveying everything. Adam needed time to process his own feelings. He had not figured that much out yet, and that was true. How much longer could he keep his friends pushed out though? What made it more difficult was the idea of what Rocky and himself were. They were more than just friends now, but Adam could not commit to the reality yet. Aisha deserved more as she had always been more of a sister to Adam.

“I’m sorry Aisha,” is the only sincere response Adam could offer. He continued, “I’m just so scared of everything. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know how to feel about all this. It’s like a nightmare. Everything is so surreal. I’m just waiting to wake up but every day when I am haunted by the memories of those monsters or reminded of the visions of your deaths, I’m scared all over again. I feel abnormal.” Adam took out the coin from his pocket. “This is proof that I can’t wake up because all of this is real.”

Rocky placed a hand on Adam’s shoulder, “I think what we really need is some answers.” The look portrayed from Rocky’s eyes pierced through Adam. It was the complete opposite of his natural laid-back ego. Rocky was really on the same level as Aisha and Adam, worried and contemplative over their predicament. Adam was not sure of the feeling his body was responding to with that look. He felt a shocking heat trail his spine as the hairs stood upon his neck. His stomach became light as he felt fear grasp him. He did not want to lose Rocky to this crisis. It was a feeling that superseded his friendship with Aisha. Adam reflexively gripped Rocky’s hand, squeezing it for comfort.

From the corner of Adam’s eye, he saw Aisha notice the exchange. Adam tried to casually dismiss his vulnerability by stepping away from his two friends. He glanced around the room when Adam saw the picture frame again and was reminded of Aisha’s behavior. Walking over to the bedside table, Adam turned up the frame of Aisha’s mother’s picture. He turned back to Aisha, “Were you thinking about her again?”

The other became quiet as Aisha walked over to Adam and grabbed the photo from him. A quiet sigh escaped her, “I saw my mother.”

Adam could hear Rocky become tense. It was a tender subject for all of them. Her mother was “an angel sent down from Heaven” as Aisha’s father would say. Adam could not disagree. She was always so gracious and inviting of Adam and Rocky. The three of them really were a family. 

Aisha guided herself to the bed and sat on the edge of it while clasping the frame in one hand and grazing the picture with the other. Adam sat down next to her as Rocky followed suit only wrapping an arm around her shoulders as well.

She continued to talk to them, “I found I have this power to see people’s pasts when I touch them.” Aisha turned to Adam, “When I touched you at school the other day, I saw your dream. I walked in your shoes. I felt what you felt. I was scared of what I saw.” 

Curiosity piqued Adam’s interest as he asked, “Did you see anything else? Could you do anything?”

Shaking her head, Aisha responded, “Not quite. All I can do is relive the memory. However, I learned that I can revisit the memory whenever I want. I’ve been through your dream a lot Adam, trying to figure something out. It just doesn’t make any sense.”

“Wait, you can remember it clearly? I have a hard time keeping everything pieced together.”

“It’s weird. Like, it feels like a dream. When I close my eyes and concentrate hard enough I can remember it in detail, but again, it’s like I’m walking through a dream so I can’t retain it verbatim. It’s like watching a fuzzy old black and white movie.”

“That’s weird,” Rocky commented. “All I can do is feel what other people feel and see their auras.” He looked excitedly at Aisha and Adam, “You guys can do some awesome shit!”

Adam was taken aback as he thought Rocky had a tremendous gift, one that fit his personality all too well, “Rocky, your power is awesome too. You can really see how people are feeling and change that if you wanted. All we can do is see pictures. You can physically change things.”

“Yeah, but that’s not what I want to do with the power.”

Aisha took her turn to add her wisdom, “If all of this has a reason to it, then I can’t think of anyone else who is more deserving of your gift. You are a wonderful and sympathetic person Rocky. Kinda clueless but when it comes to your friends and those in need, you do what’s right by them.”

Rocky blushed at the comment and looked away. Adam saw Aisha stare off into the distance as well. “When I was at the hospital getting checked out, Daddy came into the room all scared. When I hugged him, I learned the real reason why. I saw him say good-bye to my mother. I saw her in her hospital bed. I always thought she passed in her sleep at night or something. I never got to say good-bye. I was so mad at the world. But then, I saw Daddy sitting with her in her final moments. He couldn’t bear bringing me there cause he thought he wouldn’t get to see her. How selfish he was! I was her daughter! She was.. my mother…”

Aisha’s tears hit the picture frame. Adam found himself snuggled into Aisha as was Rocky on the other side of her, both of them holding Aisha as she cried and told her tale. “But something happened. I relived Daddy’s moments, him counting the steps he took to the room. I felt the warmth in her hand as he grabbed Momma’s hand. Then, I saw myself in that room. I swear it felt that I actually walked toward and crouched beside her by the bed, and I spoke at her, hoping she would hear me. You know what happened? She looked at me, and said ‘Aisha, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to see you again. I love you.’ I don’t know if that was Daddy, but I feel like Momma saw me. I feel that I got to tell her I love you. I feel that I finally got to tell her good-bye as Momma passed with a smile on her face.”

Adam was stunned speechless. All he could do was sit there and hold Aisha, the three of them sitting there in silence.

\--------------------

Adam opened the door to Rocky’s car and he saw Aisha standing on the front porch, looking out in the distance.

On the other side of the car, Rocky shouted, “Hey Aisha! You coming?”

As Aisha was seemingly pulled from her thoughts, she yelled in response, “Yeah! I’m coming!”

Rocky shuffled into the car and closed the door. Adam stood looking after Aisha, worried for her. She was so strong to keep herself going for not only the past few days but to be able to continue living so cheerfully for the past couple of years. Adam thought about what she said about Adam keeping everything on his shoulders, trying to fight through his battles by himself. Aisha had her own personal battle too, but she proved she did not shoulder it alone. Adam could learn from her bravery.

A brief smile glimpsed across her face as Aisha headed to the car. Placing a hand on Adam, Aisha stated, “I’m ready,” in a calm manner.

Adam knew that was a special message that he needed to hear, gently wrapped up in a simple sentence. Aisha was ready to move forward with Adam and Rocky beside her after two years of battling. Maybe, it was time for Adam to move forward too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a one shot I wrote for Aisha referring to the vision of her mother that I will upload as well for those that would like to read it.


	15. Rocky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter from Rocky's point of view for Part 1 of Change.

_All I can think about is seeing Dad again. Everybody is worried about him. I just want him to be alright. I hope we get there quickly. It seems like it’s taking forever to get to this check station. I don’t get why the town is under all of this security. It doesn’t make any sense, especially with no sign of the Putties or Rita attacking us. Maybe I should call Jason up and see if he can give us some answers. I’ve been meaning to try calling him on the communicator. I don’t know. Maybe I’ve been putting it off because I don’t want to think about this either. It’s crazy to believe. Everyone else has been having their issues, but what about me? I’m freaked out; I don’t know what to do. I don’t even know why we are out here in the first place. Just another whim of mine, hoping that I will figure it out as we go along. It’s wearing down on me. But I have to be strong. If I’m not, who will be?_

Rocky’s thoughts were interrupted as Aisha grazed Rocky’s arm, “Are you ok, Rocky? You are gripping the steering wheel pretty tight there.”

Refocusing on the road in front of him, Rocky glanced at his hands. His knuckles were bare white. “Sorry,” was all he could muster. Clearing his throat, he added, “I’m just thinking about everything.”

In the back seat Adam had leaned forward to join the conversation, “It’s going to be ok, Rock.” Adam squeezed his shoulder in response, “We’ll find your father.”

Rocky continued on in silence. As they came closer to their destination, Rocky felt a pooling worry in the pit of his stomach. Something felt out of place, more so than things already were. It was weird to describe. It was as if something sinister or even evil was in front of them. Though Rocky saw nothing on the road, the image that bore into his mind was one of a darkening sky, a storm that there were heading straight into.

“Guys, something doesn’t feel right. Keep your eyes open.” After a few more minutes of driving, Rocky saw groups of cars and people congregating to a makeshift patrol station centered between the barricade in the middle of the highway. Signs were held up by people everywhere and the crowd appeared angry. The more Rocky focused on them, he felt a rising heat in his flesh as the area around him turned a shade of red. He was starting to feel the mass amount of emotion from the crowd. It was intoxicating him, making it hard to breathe.

“Rocky,” a female voice called out.

“Hey, Rocky. You’re scaring me,” Rocky blinked as Aisha spoke to him again.

“I’m going to pull over,” Rocky parked the car haphazardly to the side due to the various obstructions.

Rocky stepped out of the car to a chorus of angry yelling. Upon the station was a military officer with a megaphone held in his hand. From Rocky’s perspective, the man appeared young and oddly pale. The officer lifted the megaphone to his mouth, “I am General Daimou.” The angry chanting dimmed down as the general continued, “I serve within the United States Army and I have been positioned to oversee the great city of Stone Canyon in order to investigate and protect it from the terrorists that have invaded our borders. We have a continued investigation as to why these villains have targeted us. I understand that many of you have been separated from your families and friends, but it is to everyone’s safety that we maintain peace and cooperation.”

“Let our families in!” One voice shouted.

Another chimed in, “They’ve done nothing wrong!”

The congregation began to speak again before the general held out a hand, quelling the quick tempers rising below him. “I understand your concerns but this is a military operation and we must ask you to clear the area as to not interfere with the business we are conducting. We will maintain order and are giving everyone five minutes to begin clearing before the military is forced to escort the citizens back to their homes. No negotiations.”

As the crowd ignited in protest, Rocky swore he saw a smile play across the general’s features. Something felt unnatural about the general. He was unsure what it could be. Looking around, Rocky could feel the energy rising within him again as the irritation surged. Rocky’s instincts told him that whatever he intended to do needed to be done quickly. Adam and Aisha stood adjacent to him. Turning around, he quipped, “Guys let’s try to find my dad and then just get out of here.”

“But Rocky, what if he isn’t or if he is on the other side of the barricade? We can’t just...” Aisha began to reason.

Rocky cut her off, “No we find him and bring him home.”

“Rocky we aren’t in a position to be able to do anything. You heard the general. We only five minutes before the military starts intervening,” Adam chided in with Aisha.

“Fine. You two run away. I didn’t come all the way here for nothing,” Rocky could hear his companions trying to stop him, but his resolve was absolute. He had to bring his father home. Rocky had to make sure that Dad was safe.

As Rocky ebbed through the crowd his senses continued to slowly overwhelm him. It was as if he was on fire. He could not process the intense feeling of anger and fear that was coursing through him. Only a small portion was actually his. It was as if a huge tidal wave continued to wash over him yet there were variations throughout. One second he would feel worry, the next an irrational fury spiked, then his mood plummeted and he felt scared and withdrawn. The constant cycle wore Rocky down quickly. He became disoriented as he heard a thunderous voice accompanied by some huge object knock into him. Rocky fell to the ground. As he attempted to regain control of his senses, everything around him was blurry.

“I can’t… I can’t…” Rocky started to freak out at the loss of control over his own emotions and senses.

A voice called out to Rocky but he could not interpret what was being said. As the sound came closer, Rocky recognized the face associated with the voice. Adam spoke to him in concern, “Rocky, are you okay!? You look pale. What’s wrong?”

“I… I can feel everything.”

“What do you mean everything?” Adam asked.

Rocky waved around him exaggeratedly. Just to move his body started feeling like a tremendous effort. He wanted the feelings to stop, “Everyone.”

Adam looked around his vicinity and it did not appear to take long for Adam to register what Rocky was talking about, “How are you able to do that?”

A shrug of his shoulders and a tilt of his head was all Rocky could offer as a response.

“I guess everyone’s emotions are turbulent right now. C’mon. We need to get you somewhere quiet.” Adam lifted Rocky up, “Aisha, over here!”

Aisha appeared within seconds, “Oh my god, Rocky what’s wrong!?”

“It’s his empathy. We need to get him somewhere quiet. Aisha, can you help me?”

Rocky felt Aisha tug underneath his other arm as they guided him away from the sea of emotions. Eventually, the distance was beginning to take effect as the edge from the sting of emotions was slightly dulled. Rocky felt himself rested against something cool like metal. He did not know what but Rocky took that as a sign since he could start thinking his own thoughts again, feeling his own senses.

“How do you feel?” Aisha asked.

“I’ve got a splitting headache,” Rocky groaned as he rubbed his temples with one hand, bracing himself with the other.

“I’ll go check in the car if there’s anything or maybe some water. We need to hurry though.”

“Agreed,” Adam calmly stated as Aisha’s footsteps scurried away. His attention focused on Rocky, “Hey are you alright?”

Adam’s voice sounded sweet to Rocky’s ears, especially when they were filled with concern like that, “Yeah I’m better thanks to you, my knight in shining armor.”

Rocky looked up at Adam and saw the man looking away, blushing. It was a very endearing sight. “It was nothing,” Adam responded.

“Hey,” Rocky stated softly as he tugged gently at Adam’s chin, pulling the man’s eyes toward him. “Thank you.” Adam’s eyes seemed to dilate slightly as his breathing became shallow. “I didn’t realize I could control you so easily. Must be my natural charm,” Rocky continued with a low voice.

“I’m beginning to think you knew what you’ve been doing all along,” Adam’s words becoming increasingly quieter.

“What are you thinking Adam?” Rocky felt his throat become gravelly. He was not sure what was spurring his actions, but the high he was feeling from his interaction with Adam, the lust in his chest, had drowned out the world. He could even ignore the throbbing from his headache.

“That I want to kiss you.”

“So? Why don’t you?”

“Because…”

All of a sudden a unanimous scream jolted through Rocky as he and Adam stood abruptly. Rocky felt normal again, all of the emotions Rocky felt were his. The sight in front of him was all too hauntingly familiar. Putties had appeared in the vicinity. They battered people around like flies, smashing vehicles, tearing up everything in their path. Among them were a distinct trio of monstrous figures, none of them appeared familiar.

“Adam!”

Rocky caught a glance of Adam nodding, “I know.”

The two of them charged toward the monsters as the citizens of Stone Canyon scattered around them. As they approached the center of the of the chaos, Rocky noticed his headache appeared to have disappeared completely. The abrupt change in the population’s emotion must have thrown his empathy off. Rocky was glad for it.

Seeing the Putties up close, Rocky recognized the same bulky movements and patterns as before. At least they were predictable to fight. The aim was not the putties though. Rocky wanted to talk to who was behind it. That trio of monsters was their best bet. However, as Rocky scanned his surroundings, they seemed to have disappeared almost immediately.

“Rocky watch out!” Adam called toward Rocky.

To his left Rocky saw a Putty lunge toward him. Rocky leapt out of the way in time to avoid the monstrous charge. Regaining his footing, Rocky turned around again to notice a couple of other Putties preparing to chase after him. Rocky needed a way to disarm them. Looking around he saw on the other side of the barricade that Putties had appeared there as well. Those citizens would need help as well, especially since they were trapped on the outskirts of the city. An idea dawned on Rocky then.

Rocky called to the Putties focused on him, “Hey rock heads! Come get me!” Turning tail, Rocky bolted toward the barricade.

He heard Adam calling out to him again, “What are you doing!?”

“Improvising!” Rocky shouted in no particular direction.

Getting closer to the barricade, the thunderous stomps inched closer toward Rocky faster than he was comfortable with. The barricade was predominantly fencing embedded with pillars to keep the barricade fastened in place. It look just sturdy enough to leap off of. “Good thing I’ve been practicing this. Now!”

Rocky rushed at a pillar, running up and kicking himself off of it with enough speed that he managed to flip behind the Putties. Landing, albeit a little clumsily, Rocky saw his plan worked as the Putties tore through the barricade and opened up a passage between the two sides.

Adam had caught up with Rocky, “What was that!?”

Rocky grinned at Adam, “A little trick I’ve been working on at the dojo.”

“Uh huh, and how exactly will that help you in a fight?”

“It just did,” Rocky said smugly while pointing to the fence.

A laugh escaped from Adam, “C’mon let’s go join up with Aisha. We need to make sure she is okay.”

“Right behind ya!” Rocky caught a glimpse of Adam’s ass as Adam jogged away from him. Rocky had to quell the heat that rushed to his crotch.

_Bad thoughts.Bad thoughts. Not right now,_ He told himself.

In attempting to distract himself, Rocky realized what his improvisation really did: it had opened up a passage to the opposite side of the highway, a chance to find his dad.

“Hey Adam! Wait!” Rocky called out as he headed toward the hole in the fence.

Adam’s footsteps followed behind Rocky, “Rocky we need to find Aisha and maybe track down those three creatures. They may be what’s behind this and where we can get answers.”

“We came here to find my father. Once we find Dad and make sure he is safe, then we can stop what’s going on.”

“Look: I know why we originally came here but that doesn’t mean we should ignore everyone else that is in danger.”

Rocky faced Adam, “What chance do we have against these monsters in a fair fight Adam?”

“That doesn’t mean that we can’t try to do something.”

Aisha’s voice appeared beside them, “Hey guys more of those Putties are headed over here. Whatever you guys did got their attention.”

“Aisha, why did you come back over here?” Adam had asked.

“I was left out of the fight last time. I’m not going to stand by on the sidelines when I am able to help,” Aisha stated resolutely.

Rocky noticed the group of Putties that marched on their location. Gunshots began firing behind them on the opposite side of the fence. The military had begun to intervene. It was turning into a warzone and if Rocky and his companions were not careful, they could easily be drawn into a life threatening situation. They were already in danger as it was.

“C’mon we need to go. Follow me,” Rocky returned his attention to the new passage through the fence; however, additional Putties joined the fray, impeding their path.

“Dammit,” Adam responded.

“Well, looks like we have to fight our way out guys,” Aisha remarked as she posed herself into a fighting stance.

Rocky followed suit, “Well that’s what you wanted right?” He let out a chuckle. “It could be worse.”

“I don’t see how,” Adam’s voice contained worry for the three of them. “Rocky! Watch out!”

Turning to his left, Rocky saw a Putty aiming a stone fist at him. Rocky braced himself for the impact expecting the blow to crush him. The punch collided with something solid, yet Rocky felt no connection. Looking up, Rocky saw that Adam had intercepted the hit. Not only that, Adam caught the fist and was firmly braced against it.

Rocky stumbled out, “Ah… Adam… How did you?”

Adam was just as stunned, “It must be the power coin. Kind of like with the accelerated healing.”

What happened next was even more surprising as Adam flung the stone arm away and connected a punch to its chest and knocking the creature backward.

“Whoa,” Aisha and Rocky said in unison.

“Adam there’s another one coming up behind us!” Rocky warned Adam as he grabbed Aisha and fled the oncoming Putty.

Rocky caught a glimpse of Adam taking initiative. Adam crouched into a spinning kick, tripping the monster onto its face. Returning to his feet, another pair arrived and Adam jumped into action. He stepped into a kick that connected with one Putty’s chest and sent the monster into a pile of debris. The second Putty threw a punch yet Adam effortlessly ducked underneath it and shoved his shoulder into the monster, making it lose its balance. With a quick jab to the face with his left and an uppercut with his right, Adam knocked the remaining Putty off its feet. Looking around his immediate vicinity, Adam chased after Rocky and Aisha and caught up to them.

“Adam that was amazing! Did it hurt?” Rocky examined Adam’s body and had to admit the fight scene had sent another spark of heat straight to his groin.

Looking at his hands and rubbing them, Adam replied, “It felt like punching a brick wall but It doesn’t ache, just feels a little tender.”

“Well it looks like twenty questions is going to have to wait. There are more,” Aisha pointed toward the oncoming group.

“Where do they keep coming from?” Rocky asked. “Even with your new super strength Adam, I don’t think you can take them all by yourself.” Slowly stepping away, Rocky felt they were backed into a corner.

“Well it looks like we don’t have a choice,” Adam readied himself again.

A trio of cracking lights appeared on the ground in front of them revealing three familiar figures. It was Jason and the others, the Power Rangers. Almost as soon as they became visible they leapt into action. Trini, the yellow ranger, appeared to be the fastest as she whipped out a pair of daggers and rolled through the enemy. She switched between bracing herself on her knees and feet as she cut through the Putties swiftly. Two cuts to one Putty, a roll toward the next as she directed the force of her blows into a scissor cut, and a then she side rolled and threw her daggers into the head of another Putty.

The pink ranger, Kimberly, flipped into the fray and summoned her bow midair. As she glided over a Putty, she launched an arrow straight through its core. Landing on her feet, she punched an oncoming Putty with the hilt of her bow, knocking it backward. She drew an arrow and shot it through the monster, then continued onto her next target.

The last ranger, Jason as the leader and clad in red, had readied an elaborate sword. As three Putties charged him, he responded with brutish swings. One swing cleaved a Putty in half. He easily sidestepped the other two. Facing their backs, Jason leapt toward one of them and jabbed his blade into the stone body. Jason drew his pistol from its holster and shot the opposite creature, blasting its head off clean. Withdrawing his blade, Jason cut down the final Putty.

_Amazing, such strength,_ is all that Rocky could think. Suddenly, a ping of emotion shot through him. It was fear yet the person it was associated with felt familiar, intimate. _Dad!_ Rocky’s instincts pulled him through the gap in the barricade as he heard Adam behind him, “Rocky! Where are you going!” Adam’s voice disappeared as Rocky ran through the barricade and into the oncoming scene. Cars were scattered everywhere as people fled. Guns rattled off louder as he noticed military personnel shooting Putties. Concentrated fire appeared to halt some of the monsters; however, individual fire barely affected them. Screams echoed and waves of fear generated from the people began crashing over Rocky.

_No not now! I’ve got to find Dad!_ Rocky stayed on the outskirts of the fighting as he let his instinct lead him toward the highlighted fear, the one he believe to be his dad’s. As he became closer, other sensations related to his ability triggered. He saw a person surrounded in flares of purple and red, his dad. Adjacent to him were three other figures. All three glowed an eerie black; it appeared evil. 

It was not long before he arrived at his destination. It was far enough away from the gunfire that they were not in immediate danger. No Putties had ventured this far either. The only threat were the three monsters in front of him. The person Rocky felt he did indeed recognize.

“Dad!” The figure heard Rocky’s call and as he turned Rocky saw relief sweep across his father’s face.

“Rocky!”

Rocky ran into his father’s arms and held him tight, “God, I missed you.” He pulled away to look at his father, “I’m here to get you out of here. We have to go, now!”

“Ok, son, but…”

“Not so fast, Rocky,” a sing soft voice called out to Rocky.

Looking at the direction of the voice, Rocky saw it came from the middle monster of the three figures. It was a tad shorter than Rocky and wearing a white and blue robe with an apron holding a myriad of bottles and tools. His body was covered in a mix of white feathers and fur with a protruded snout.  It wore glasses too small for its broad face and a blue headband adorned its head. “I’ve been anticipating our meeting, Rocky.”

“Why do you look like the dragon from a never ending story? And how do you know my name?”

“I haven’t the faintest idea what you are talking about. I’ve been sent as an envoy for Rita. My colleagues here are Squat and Baboo. They… lack the intelligence of most of Rita’s faithful servants but I can assure you that they are most deadly when in their element, so I would not try anything foolish if I were you.”

“What do you want!” Rocky wanted nothing more than to flee from this place now that he was reunited with his dad. His father clutched Rocky’s arm tightly.

“Straight to the matter at hand. I respect efficiency. Well, Rita would like to offer you the same deal as she relayed to our dear Adam. You see, she is quite interested in your powers, especially since they are developing at quite an alarming rate. Your skills would be paramount against the more base creatures of the universe that cling tightly to their emotions,” the monster rubbed its chin with its hand. “Oh do forgive my manners. My name is Finster. I am Rita’s prodigious scientist, my main responsibility is supplying her army with worthy soldiers.”

“So you are responsible for all of these Putties attacking Stone Canyon?” Rocky’s kept his fury in check as he clenched his fists. He had someone to channel his anger toward.

“Oh no,” Finster laughed, “I would never create creatures so base. My creations are much more elaborate and detailed to perfection, such as this gift I have prepared for you.” Finster snapped his fingers as a fourth creature appeared in front of him. Squat and Baboo chuckled humorously.

The creature was eerily designed as a mannequin with a disjointed mask covering its face. Misshapen purple robes covered its body.  It towered above all of them. When it moved, the creature’s joints creaked sounding too akin to wood blocks clapping against each other.

“I call it the Marionette. I am quite proud of it,” Finster’s voice was filled with admiration as he gazed at his creation with pride. Almost in an instant the sing song expression turned sinister as Finster focused his gaze on Rocky, “You have until Friday to answer favorably to Rita’s offer. Join her cause and she will spare you and your family. If you decline, well,” Finster snapped his fingers again, “I cannot say what will happen to your father.”

“What? No…”

Rocky did not see the Marionette appear in front of Rocky and his father. It shoved Rocky onto the ground as it picked up his father by the throat. Holding him up to eye level, the creature held his hand up as five strings sprung forth and imbedded itself into Rocky’s father. A dark energy surrounded the monster and it began to seep inside his father’s body in a gaseous form until it had disappeared completely. His father slumped down to the ground.

“Dad! No!” Rocky pushed himself off the ground and ran over to his father, shaking him and speaking to him but receiving no response. Rocky looked over toward Finster.

“Accept, and your father goes free. Now who is the puppet and who is the puppetmaster?” Finster laughed as Squat and Baboo disappeared in a black shadow with the evil scientist.


	16. Adam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter for Part 1 from Adam's perspective. I have a bunch of notes about the fic's status at the end of the chapter. Thank you so much to everyone for coming along Adam and Rocky's journey so far. I promise we will be seeing much more of them.

“Rocky! Where are you going!?” Adam yelled out yet his words fell on deaf ears as Rocky disappeared through the barricade. Adam began to pursue him but was intercepted by another pair of Putties.

“Damn it!” _Rocky you better be okay_ , Adam thought.

“How’re we going to get out of this mess? Can we stop them?” Aisha had asked.

“I… I don’t know,” gunshots had fired in the distance making Adam flinch. “The situation is getting too dangerous. We need to grab Rocky and get out of here.”

“Here they come!” Aisha readied herself next to Adam as the Putties ran toward them.

In the blink of an eye, a loud crack resounded from the monsters as the red ranger cleaved through their bodies. Within seconds the Putties had fallen in half as they turned to gravel upon hitting the ground. Jason stood up, turning to face the two of them. With the flick of his wrist, Jason’s sword had disappeared into thin air. The ranger quickly approached the two of them, “Are you guys okay?”

“Yeah we are fine. Thanks Jason.” Adam responded.

The ranger froze in place as he glanced between the two of them. His attention was more focused on Aisha, the person he had not met the day of the initial attack. Realizing for whatever reason the rangers must keep their identities secret, Adam hastily followed up his previous comment, “This is Aisha. She is best friends with Rocky and I. It’s cool. She won’t say anything.”

After a moment’s pause, Jason removed his helmet. Sweat and unraveled hair framed around a broad face held a serious expression, “Do you know where Finster is at?”

“Who?” Aisha asked.

“Finster. He should be with two others, Squat and Baboo. He is behind this attack. We didn’t even know about Finster until Zordon revealed he was leading an attack against Stone Canyon. He is Rita’s supplier of monsters that we have been fighting for the past year and a half.”

Adam attempted to process this information. It was another complication added to the mess their lives had turned into within the past week. “What do you mean? Was he responsible for the original attack? I thought that was Rita.”

“It’s definitely Rita. No, Finster doesn’t create the Putties. He creates far more sinister monsters, more powerful than what any ranger can defeat alone. Speaking of which, I want you take this,” Jason handed what looked like an oversized buckle, only it contained a coin similar to his dragon coin. It depicted the image of a…

“It’s a Mastodon. Adam, we need you to become the black power ranger.” Jason’s words were stern yet there was a compassion to his voice. If Adam wanted to decline the offer, he felt that Jason would allow him to do so. However, Adam knew what he wanted to do.

“How do I…” Adam began to ask.

“Power down,” Jason’s uniform disappeared in a flash of red light. “I’ll show you how. Just hold out your morpher like this and call on your creature. You will morph into the black power ranger. Are you ready?”

Adam nodded as he mirrored the pose Jason showed him.

_“Mastodon!!”_

_“Tyrannosaurus!!”_

A wave of energy surrounded Adam as he felt raw power course through his veins. It was a stronger sensation than the energy from the green power coin. Looking over his body he noticed the familiar suit, only it was his. The mastodon was emblazoned within the morpher on his belt while his suit was donned in black. Excitement rose within Adam as he wanted to test out this new strength.

Putties approached Adam and Jason. Jason nodded at Adam before jumping into action, taking half of the putties for himself. Two were left for Adam yet the Putties did not show fear as they charged at Adam. The raw strength took over as he shoved two palms out at the enemies. He firmly pushed into their torsos as he felt his body momentum drive the force of his efforts. The Putties collided into his grips but Adam easily overpowered them. Continuing to drive them back, Adam eventually picked up enough speed and threw them backward, knocking them flat on their backs.

Adam wasted no opportunity. His instincts took over as he launched himself at the enemy. One Putty had managed to bring itself up by the time Adam arrived. Grabbing an arm of the upright Putty with Adam’s right hand, Adam swiftly landed a blow with his palm to the monster’s torso and bowed beneath the Putty’s arm. Adam pinned the arm to the creature’s back and kicked the creature’s calf, bringing it to its knees. The other Putty approached Adam and swung its arm with raw force. Adam dodged the blow as he somersaulted backward. He saw the Putty had cleaved through its companion, causing it to collapse into pieces. A front kick to the chest followed by a spinning jump kick to the head, Adam defeated the second Putty as its head fell clean off its stone body.

Looking around the site, it appeared the other rangers had defeated or driven off the other Putties as this side of the highway was cleared of any enemies. Adam had jogged back toward Aisha and she could barely contain the excitement in her voice.

“Oh. My. God. That was amazing! How did you do that!?”

Adam felt for the clasps of his helmet and took it off, letting out a chuckle, “I don’t know. I just feel this rush of raw strength. Those Putties felt like nothing when they came at me.”

“Yeah but let one of them catch you off guard and they can still cause a beating. Rita is still the responsible for their creation,” Jason’s voice was heard beside the two of them. Trini and Kim flanked him.

Adam’s smile dropped slightly, “I know. I only meant…”

Jason returned the smile, “I know. It does feel great, especially the first time.”

“Uh, what are we talking about anymore?” Kimberly had taken off her helmet, “It doesn’t sound much like morphing anymore.”

Trini had removed her helmet as well, “C’mon guys. We have more important things to worry about. Is this really the time to be immature?”

Aisha interrupted the conversation, “Hi! I’m Aisha, Adam and Rocky’s friend.” Adam was glad as he was trying to ignore Jason. Imagining anything intimate with Jason was… distracting.

“I apologize,” Jason gave a curt bow. He was definitely polite. Holding out his free hand, Jason stated, “I’m Jason. These are my friends Trini and Kim. We’re from Angel Grove.”

“And the Power Rangers from what Adam has told me and what I can obviously see. So is Adam a Power Ranger now too?” Aisha looked at Adam.

Noticing everyone’s gaze was fixated on him, Adam cleared his throat and took a moment to look around. It was fortunate there was not anyone nearby to see them. Adam heard Jason speak again, “He is if he wants to be one. The Power clearly chose him if Adam chooses to accept.”

“Jason,” Trini stated. There was a cold undertone to her voice.

“I think it’s great if Adam wants to join us. I’m tired of getting our butts handed to us. We need the Power Rangers at their full strength,” Kimberly joined in.

“Agreed,” was all Jason chimed in.

Adam could see something on Trini’s face, but he was not sure of what emotion he was reading. Something clearly went wrong with the previous rangers, specifically to the black ranger. Finally, she spoke, “It’s what’s best for the people of both Angel Grove and Stone Canyon. We need to stop Rita.”

Turning toward Adam, Jason encouraged, “So what do you say Adam? Will you join us?”

The decision was already made before they had to ask, however, “But, I don’t even know how to be a ranger or anything much about Rita. And what about Aisha and Rocky?”

“Where is Rocky?” Aisha asked.

Adam’s head split in pain as an image of Rocky with his father appeared in his head in vivid detail. It brought Adam to his knees as he dropped his helmet. He felt the others talking at him as Aisha held him ,but the reel in Adam’s head continued:

_“Dad! No!” Rocky pushed himself off the ground and ran over to his father, shaking him and speaking to him but receiving no response. Rocky had looked over to an entity clad in blue and white robes as two other figures stood beside him. The robed figure spoke to Rocky before disappearing into shadows. Rocky looked down at his father and shook the man. Rocky’s father opened his eyes and they were cold and pure black. A devilish smile splayed across his lips and with a push, he launched Rocky off him. A man, whom Adam recognized as General Daimou, approached the two with a gun in his hand.”_

“Rocky!” Adam called out. The pain subsided in his head almost immediately. He picked up his helmet and secured it on his head as he took off through the opening in the barricade toward where Rocky was. That had to have been a vision. Something had triggered it. Maybe it was Aisha mentioning Rocky. Maybe it had to deal with morphing into a Ranger. Potentially, it was both. Adam would have to figure it out later as he felt the ping in his gut give way. He hoped that he arrived in time to stop whatever was affecting Rocky and his father.

It did not take long before Adam saw Rocky. Adam heard the footsteps of the others behind him as they approached the scene. The general was there with his gun pointed at a shocking sight. Rocky’s father held Rocky in the air with a grip around Rocky’s throat. Adam could hear muffled cries, “Dad! It’s… me… your son…” Rocky coughed, struggling to maintain air.

“Rocky!” Adam shouted again. The pain and fear in Adam’s chest resurfaced as this was the second time Adam had to endure the feeling of losing Rocky to these monsters. They could not take Rocky away from him. They could not take the man that he potentially…

Putties appeared in his path as they attempted to block the Rangers’ intervention. Adam punched one out of the way and then shoved another to the ground. He felt a blow to his stomach before flipping the Putty onto its back. Leaping over it, he was caught by another pair of Putties. Adam writhed in place as he heard the others struggling behind him and Rocky fading in front of him.

“Rocky!”

A gunshot echoed around them. Rocky’s father dropped his son. As Rocky hit the ground coughing and catching his breath, he rubbed his neck with his hand. Adam saw Rocky’s expression as he looked up at his father. It ached to see someone so pure have to fall apart into a state so unnatural.

“Dad?” Rocky stood up looking at his father with mixed emotions. Confusion. Anger. Fear. The last feeling hit Adam hard as he caught onto what Rocky was realizing. Blood was splattered on Rocky’s shirt with blood smeared on random areas on his hands and body. Something appeared to evaporate from Rocky’s father before his body collapsed into Rocky’s arms. Rocky had held his father in his arms for what felt like an eternity. That moment hit hard.

“Dad...” Rocky’s voice cracked as his knees buckled. Cradling the man in his arms Rocky mumbled the same utterance to the body in his arms, “No, Dad, no. C’mon wake up. We gotta go.”

Nothing. No movement. No sound. Nothing emitted from Rocky’s father. Rocky began crying as he pressed his face into his dad’s neck.

Adam could not make out the muffled phrases. Anger surged through Adam. He needed to get to Rocky. He needed to destroy these Putties around him. They blocked his path to Rocky. Adam focused all of his energy into removing his enemies, “Get out of my way!!”

Adam threw his arms away from his body as he batted away the Putties clinging to him. He promptly jump kicked the Putty in front of him and then back kicked the Putty behind him before they could react. With a brief window available, Adam charged past the group and ran to Rocky.

Once he arrived at Rocky’s side he cast of his helmet and placed a hand on Rocky, “Rocky, I…” He could not look at the body in Rocky’s arms.

His friend looked up at Adam. Tears and blood were smeared across his face. Behind puffy eyes and with a strained voice, Rocky could only muster, “You’re a ranger.”

“Yeah…” Adam breathed quietly.

“Adam, he…”

Adam wrapped an arm around Rocky’s neck and kissed the top of his head. He felt Rocky lean into Adam as Rocky let his emotions out. The moment was short lived as the general stepped forward.

“He had to be stopped,” the general spoke.

Adam felt Rocky look at the general with him before Rocky coldly responded, “What?”

“I saw that monster possess him. He had to be stopped. It was a careless action to stand there and let the monster do whatever it wanted.”

“You… you shot him. You shot my father…” Adam felt Rocky begin to shake. His body was tense. Adam had to keep Rocky calm somehow.

“Rocky,” Adam did not get to say anything else as Rocky set his father on the ground and shrug out of Adam’s grip.

Adam swore he saw Daimou smile as he responded again, “Yes, Rocky. it was my duty as a soldier. I had to shoot him.”

“You shot him.” Something strange emitted from Rocky. Adam was not sure what was happening.

“You killed him. You killed my father,” Rocky was visibly shaking as he saw the tension in his neck and back stiffen more. There was almost a wave of energy hitting Adam. He felt his anger, really all of his emotions slowly ebb away.

“Rocky, I…” Adam tried to call out to Rocky.

“Shut up!” Rocky grabbed his head. “Shut up everyone! I can’t feel myself anymore! Fuck all your fears! Fuck your emotions! Let me feel myself!”

It was Rocky’s empathy again. He had mentioned a couple times about how he could feel everyone, especially when they had arrived to the check station earlier. With the shock of his father’s death, Rocky probably could not control it anymore. Adam was not sure what was going to happen, but it was affecting Rocky worse than his episode from just a few minutes ago. Adam could himself shutting down. He stopped feeling much of anything inside himself anymore.

“Shut up!”

A jolt shuddered through Adam’s body as he fell to the ground and blacked out.

\----------

When Adam woke up, the rangers and himself were demorphed. Aisha and Rocky were passed out. Rocky’s meltdown must have sent a shock to everyone’s systems due to his empathy. That was Adam’s best guess. Adam could not believe the potential Rocky’s power had under the correct circumstances. The Putties appeared to have disappeared. The remaining civilians and soldiers, both dead and alive, littered the highway and the adjacent areas. Adam went about reviving Rocky and the others.

Rocky was quiet, emotionless. He refused to budge. It was not until the ambulance finally arrived and took his father away that he wanted to go home. Rocky refused to ride with the ambulance; he felt there was no point. When they arrived back at the DeSantos residence…

A few hours had passed since the incident earlier as it was about nine o’clock in the evening. The rangers returned home, having teleported back to Angel Grove. Aisha was asleep next to Rocky on the bed. The silence in the house and reality of what happened today kept Adam awake as he had walked to the kitchen to grab a glass of water. The rest of Rocky’s family had burrowed themselves in their rooms, mourning. An unnatural and intoxicating air filled the household making it hard to breath. Regardless, Adam stayed.

Rocky had refused to let Aisha and Adam go home. Rocky did not want to be alone tonight. He needed Adam and Aisha to stay with him.

_And we did._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the big "Change" *heh heh* to this fic is obviously that it is split into different parts now. I participated in a writing contest at my university and I gained a lot of perspective into my writing style and process. The areas I need to work on for this fic lie in two areas. First, I was and still am ambitious. This is going to be a series that I commit myself to and will probably be working on for a long time. For the first fic, I have a lot of major events planned and have a basic outline in my head. However, I need to break it up in order to really set the ground work for future fics in the series. I have Part 1based on introducing the main characters and my main concepts, as well as starting the romance for Adam and Rocky. I feel with the end of chapter 16, it created a clear break between different parts of the story I need and want to tell. Second, with respect to organizing my writing process, I also want to be adept at writing Adam and Rocky's mindsets. Part 2 is going to be strictly from Adam's perspective. Part 3 will wrap up the story for Change and be strictly from Rocky's perspective. My goal is to be able to know how I portray each character and be consistent. 
> 
> I know generally the major plot points, villains, and end game of the entire Burdens series and am excited to continue working on this project. I am using NaNoWriMo to help draft all of Part 2 and perhaps bits of Part 3. I do want to go back to a consistent schedule for updating. I do not want to make another promise until I can confidently commit to a schedule. Once I do, I will add a note to one of my future chapters. 
> 
> One last comment: I will be adding one shots to build onto the universe as I get inspired as with the Aisha one shot I will upload. The big reason for such a hiatus since my last update in July is the anniversary of my aunt's death last August. The Aisha chapter was influenced by me dealing with the anniversary of her death as I made it both a tribute and a mourning process. My motivation was put on hold as I got caught up focusing on my schoolwork more since it hurt to write. Everything is better now though.
> 
> My promise to you is to continue to write this fic. Thank you so much again for reading and enjoying what I have created thus far. I hope to continue this journey with you, my readers. Feel free to comment or ask questions and I will get back to you. Thank you!


End file.
